Political Quotes

“The Virgin Islands of the United States sits at the most southern, most easterly point of the United States. Because of this geographic position and its proximity to South America and its almost sentry lighthouse position to the rest of the Caribbean, it has been fought over; exploited by many nations; owned by seven; and used as a base by pirates, privateers, rum and drug runners, and even great corporations. Despite so much potential, the benefits of our location, climate, our deep ports--one of the deepest in the Caribbean, our fertile soil--the people of the Virgin Islands have not received equitable return on investment and have instead been the spoils of others. Our people continue to work to create economic benefits for our homes, jobs, skills, revenue, financial independence. Our journey in oil refining is one such chapter in that search. In the 1960s, the Virgin Islands began refining oil. Our island of St. Croix became the second-largest petroleum refinery in America. In 2012, the refinery closed, exacerbating the shocks of the Great Recession, leading to unemployment rates of 18 percent. Our government made the decision to work to bring the refinery back and, after several years, the terminal and refinery reopened. In the last few weeks, my office has been in contact with the EPA regarding air emissions incidents, odors, and emissions around the vicinity of the refinery, which threaten the health of residents and our environment.…”