One would be hesitant to again write about the burning dump were it not that there are some important developments. Prime Minister Leona Romeo-Marlin and Finance Minister Mike Ferrier are headed to Brussels to seek European Union (EU) funding for a Dutch-French approach to tackle the island’s waste management issues.
This would appear to indicate that it won’t be done – at least, not completely – with hurricane recovery monies made available by the Netherlands via the World Bank. State Secretary of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations Raymond Knops said neither St. Maarten nor The Hague alone can solve the problem.
The latter is a bit questionable, considering the size of an operation like the Rijnmond waste processing facility. However, the point is that for it really to work, both sides of the island must be involved.
As stated earlier, this makes sense for reasons regarding economy of scale, cost-effectiveness, efficiency, etc. Besides, as Knops bluntly put it, local politicians have been talking about doing something for more than 30 years.
The two interim-cabinet members on a mission would do well to keep in mind that “The Friendly Island” doesn’t exactly have a good record when it comes to joint projects. Already-approved EU funds for a sewage plant in the Cole Bay area that would greatly benefit Simpson Bay Lagoon and its economically-important marine industry were basically lost due to lack of decision-making and political infighting.
Nevertheless, the current direction seems the right one, although existing initiatives ought not be ignored. One of these is the cooperation agreement that expired on October 19, 2017, with the municipality of Amsterdam, which was reportedly willing to dispose of 50 per cent of the existing sanitary landfill on Pond Island.
The Social Economic Council SER in its December 2016 “unsolicited” advice on the matter favoured waste reduction, garbage separation and sorting, recycling and reuse together with the planned waste-to-energy plant. In all honesty, these are some of the same things former VROMI Minister Christophe Emanuel and Head of Maintenance Claudius “Toontje” Buncamper had mentioned last year.
Coincidentally or not, the press conference with Knops took place at SER because of the smoke affecting the Government Building. The Council’s suggestions backed by research in a Caribbean context should be seriously considered as well.
Of course, the new “Irma dump” added to an already out-of-control situation and has made the enormous challenge even greater. St. Maarten Development Movement (SDM) rightfully noted that there could be many toxic materials within the largely uncovered rubbish there, including possibly asbestos from damaged old roofs and buildings.
Still, taking into account the magnitude of the current public health and environmental hazard, a comprehensive effort backed by the EU, France and the Netherlands at this point may be the best way to go. But solving the crisis is also urgent, so those involved need to move quickly and resolutely.
