The dump was on fire again this past Sunday and residents downwind were once more advised to keep doors and windows closed, especially if they had respiratory challenges. It’s beginning to sound like a broken record, but the ever-growing outdated landfill has slowly but surely become one of St. Maarten’s most pressing problems.
During the past two decades or so many trips abroad were made by various delegations to look at waste incinerators and other processing facilities, projects drawn up and even tenders held. The result of all this up to now has been zero, zilch, nada.
Recently plans were announced for some long-awaited garbage separation as a first step. That is certainly good news, because this is anyhow required also for modern systems that, for example, extract gas to produce electricity.
Speaking of which, whatever waste-to-energy plant would obviously require utilities company GEBE fully on board as the party to purchase the end product. Until the latter is the case, discussion on such ideas will remain just that: talk.
But this is not the only GEBE-related issue on which Government appears to be dragging its feet. Management has submitted a self-funded proposal (see Saturday paper) to cover the existing public parking areas along Walter Nisbeth Road on the Pondfill with solar panels totalling 922 kilowatts, but the lots must be signed over to the company.
Action on these matters is actually needed not tomorrow, but yesterday.
