‘Cell Two’ of the Haags Bosch Sanitary Landfill facility, located at Eccles, East Bank Demerara, was officially commissioned on Friday last.

THE $290,639,213 contract for the construction of the landfill was awarded in 2019 to S. Jagmohan Hardware Supplies and Construction Services; it had a deadline for a period of 18 months. The capacity of ‘Cell Two’ is designed to accommodate some 930,000 tonnes of waste and is equipped with a leachate collection and treatment facility. It was initially designed for a seven-year capacity, however, due to the increase of waste discarded at the facility, it will last for five and half years.

Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Nigel Dharamlall, during the commissioning ceremony, highlighted that he was particularly pleased that the contractor was able to complete the works at the site within the contractual period, so it can be at the service of the people of Guyana. The facility, which was designed to serve the municipality of Georgetown and the wider Region Four (Demerara – Mahaica) area, will also serve Region Three (Essequibo Islands – West Demerara) because of a lack of a similar facility in that region.

Dharamall noted that while the facility was originally designed to accommodate some 150 tonnes of solid waste per day, there has been a tremendous increase to approximately 450 tonnes of waste being disposed at the facility per day. Addressing some solid waste disposal service providers who were present at the commissioning, Dharamlall noted that everyone has an equal responsibility pertaining to solid waste disposal and management.

“You also have to use this opportunity as part of your social responsibility to the country to ensure that even whilst you’re in the business, that you have to spread the education, the awareness in terms of how we must sustainably manage solid waste but also in terms of how we much keep the environment clean, and how we must keep the aesthetics of the environment in an upgraded way,” he said.

Dharamlall reminded that the 2021 Budget is the largest budget the country has ever seen, which will facilitate massive growth and development, and which will inevitability result in an increase in industrial and other waste.

In this regard, he noted that it is time for serious consideration pertaining to diversification of waste disposal.

“The country is growing and I think the sector also has to grow to meet the change in dynamics of the country. We have had approaches from different companies in the oil and gas sector in terms of the disposal of their matter, so I think the scope and the opportunities in this sector is quite tremendous and I would like to encourage you to continue to invest in it,” he noted.

He also explained that while collecting and disposing of solid waste is one aspect of the equation, there is also a component to facilitate other types of businesses which would result as externalities from the industry.

“I think we have to make a business of it and we have had quite a lot of expression of interest in converting waste to energy – one of the proposals that we are looking at. We would like to consider that as part of our expanding the energy network of our country,” Dharamlall said.

He also noted that businesses must up their game in relation to their attitude towards solid waste disposal and make provision for the management of solid waste as part of their overall costs, otherwise the issue of garbage flooding the streets cannot be resolved.