The recent fires at the New Providence Landfill have prompted the government to urge a private company to fix the recurring problem ahead of schedule.
According to the government’s plan, Renew Bahamas was expected to construct a recycling facility, conduct landfill remediation and study waste streams at the city dump by the end of the year.
However, Minister of Environment Kenred Dorsett acknowledged that the company will need to visit the dump site earlier than expected.
“The plan of action is certainly in place, the takeover date was supposed to coincide with the end of this fiscal year and we’re asking Renew Bahamas to bring that date forward,” he said.
“As indicated, it’s a joint venture between the government and the company and something I certainly believe will go well for the future public health concerns in the area.”
According to Minister Dorsett, this joint venture would not only allow the government to fix a problem which he said “has not been attended to for several decades,” but also generate revenue for the public treasury.
“It provides the government with tremendous opportunity to generate revenue from the waste, so I think that provides tremendous economic potential for the government,” he said.
“That is one of the reasons why we did not want a private sector body simply coming in and taking over without revenue streams being put in place for the government.”
He added that generating revenue from the landfill is important because other landfills throughout the country are currently costing Bahamians to manage.
The smouldering smoke at the landfill has still not been fully extinguished; however, Minister Dorsett said the fire is 95 per cent contained.
St. Johns College was forced to close its doors and send students home early last week as plumes of smoke emanating from the dump reportedly posed health and environmental dangers.
Aquinas College closed for one day the week before and The Meridian School closed its doors for a few days over the same issue.
Residents and business owners have already voiced their concerns regarding their health and the environment.
