A REMEDIAL action plan to ensure sound environmental management of the Haags Bosch landfill site is now in the process of being developed by the Ministry of Communities.

Initially, the site was designed to function as a sanitary landfill, but is now operating below its designated purpose.The operation has resulted in negative impacts to both adjoining communities and the environment. The project, which was initially funded by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), has seen the threatened withdrawal of the bank’s involvement over the way the project is currently being executed.
A presentation was made to the Minister of Communities, Ronald Bulkan; Junior Minister of Communities, Keith Scott; Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Communities, Emil McGarrell; Engineering Adviser to the Ministry of Communities, Charles Ceres; and representatives of the Environmental Protection Agency, Ministry of Public Infrastructure and the Central Housing and Planning Authority “on the way forward” for site.
The presentation, which was made on Thursday, June 4 by Mr. Gordon Gilkes, Project Director of the Georgetown Solid Waste Management Programme, identifies several non-compliant items related to operations at the site.
These items included the absence of a treatment- abatement lagoon and a landfill gas management systems and the application of daily cover to the landfill. In addition, soil excavated from several locations onsite, intended for use as daily cover, was diverted, with the agreement of the executing agency, to another location for use not related to landfill management.
The project, initially conceptualised to be managed by the Georgetown municipality, is now managed by central government, since it was expanded to include several Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDCs) on the East Coast and East Bank of Demerara as well as three NDCs on the West Demerara.
The contract for the construction and management of the landfill was awarded to BK International and Puran Brothers Disposal Services and utilisation of the landfill was fast tracked, since the open dump formerly operated in Le Repentir Cemetery had reached its capacity.
Minister Bulkan in his remarks indicated that the current state of the Haags Bosch landfill site resulted from a propensity to micromanage. “Ideally, solid waste management would now be the responsibility of the local authorities and not central government’s as was done in the immediate past,” he asserted.
Bulkan stated that the lessons learnt on remedying the landfill site would inform the ministry’s efforts in strengthening Local Democratic Organs for the management of such sites.
Under a solid waste management strategy, the new Government will ensure that waste produced by households and commercial entities will not become an environmental and health problem. It is envisaged that under such a strategy, existing dumpsites will either be closed or re-formulated to achieve higher operational standards.