Dump on Cabinet agenda but no details revealed

| 20/12/2021 | 31 Comments
ReGen work on the landfill (from social media)

(CNS): Cabinet was updated last week on what’s happening with the integrated solid waste management system, according to the note released by officials summarizing the weekly meeting of government’s frontbench ministers and the governor. But other than noting that Cabinet “approved a guarantee of payment to the Decco Consortium”, no other details were released about the plans for this long awaited project.

As another year draws to a close after Dart was selected to develop the waste-to-energy facility and recycling systems in October 2017, there is still no full agreement on the table.

For over a year Dart has been working on the remediation of the existing landfill in George town, leaving just a small area of the dump for active operations. This is costing government around $24 million per year and is a separate arrangement from the overall project, now known as ReGen, which deals with the wider issues of WTE, reducing the amount of garbage generated, as well as reusing things, recycling and composting.

The PACT Government struck a preliminary deal with the Dart Group, the islands’ largest landowner and investor whose flagship town, Camana Bay, was created next to the current landfill. However, PACT has not yet completed that agreement.

Speaking during Finance Committee recently, Premier Wayne Panton, who has taken over the responsibility for this project, placing it under his ministry for sustainability, said discussions were still ongoing with Dart over the full deal.

During the last few weeks the remediation work moved to the next phase, when engineers began capping the part of the dump that is no longer in use. “ReGen teams have rolled the first layer of geosynthetic clay liners,” Dart officials said in a social media post. “Capping the landfill stops smells, prevents pests and reduces fire risk.”

Meanwhile, fire crews were still on site on the operational side of the landfill on Monday, as the dump continued to smoulder following an major fire just over one week ago and a series of small blazes over the last few weeks.


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Category: Environmental Health, Health

Comments (31)

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  1. Anonymous says:

    The dump has been on every past agenda. The intelligence to deal with it has still not shown up and likely never will. Perhaps it’s time to move on and except that this is now part of Cayman Islands life. Like it or leave or just don’t go downwind of it.

    • Anonymous says:

      spot on…cig could not even manage an airport car-parking system.
      tells you everything you need to know.

  2. Lio says:

    Back in 1990’s in my city Bari in Italy we had a dump very similar in size/Hight as Caymans. they closed it down, covered it with tons of soil, planted trees, made a park and path ways and an outdoor exercise area with a ”viewing” area overlooking the city. Google Ecopoli and you will see. It would be nice if Cayman did something similar.

    • Anonymous says:

      I think that’s what’s planned. CIG doesn’t really have anyone competent to negotiate a complicated deal, and always wants some way to say expats are paying for it. Thus, the lack of progress.

    • Anonymous says:

      That’s what is sort of planned here. However our government said there was 5 years life in the dump and that was 25 years ago. Successive 5 year periods came and went and the pile got higher and higher.

      Fires on the dump have happened so frequently that it makes you wonder if they were part of the plan to reduce the size of the pile.
      I don’t know how long you have been here but I’ll will tell you that the absence of both commitment by our politicians and environmental standards here has lead to the mess we have now.

      Very few of our politicians over years had interest in solving our solid waste debacle let alone understanding consequences of inaction. They were and still are primarily interested in the money rolling in from unhindered and loosely controlled unsustainable development.

      Countless millions have been spent on studies, testing and reports, all recommendations for the most part were ignored, it’s a National disgrace for somewhere that bills itself as a tourist paradise.

      We have very corrupt elements and practices in both our public and private sectors. Some don’t even see it as beer corrupt anymore as is has gone on for so long it is now the norm. You have some of the same in Italy however you have environmental rules, we don’t and corruption has far more of an impact in small island states like ours.

  3. Hancock says:

    Is that the same heavy equipment I saw at Hurleys?

  4. Anonymous says:

    dart offered a free solution years ago…but ppm tunred it down for the sake of a few votes in bodden town.
    welcome to wonderland

  5. Anonymous says:

    don’t worry pact…you only have another 3 years of ‘soon come’ promisises before it can be passed over to the next administration.

  6. Anonymous says:

    mount thrashmre…a monument to the incompetence and failure of local governance for the past 40 years.

    • Anonymous says:

      Also a failure of your literacy skills, bobo.

    • Hancock says:

      Mount Trashmore has its uses. For those with a manual gear car you can try your hill starts on it. Only place in Cayman to do that. Roll up window. Not recommended for convertibles.

  7. Anonymous says:

    Racket for DART to be honest.

    Paid to clean up the mess next to their land. No only that, they then get paid to generate and sell electricity to the grid.

    Dart is going to be more powerful than gov shortly, controls the land, politicians, power and the dump!

    • Anonymous says:

      At some point after they are paid, they will have to announce the shocker announcement that the stink isn’t from the dump, but from the waste treatment ponds on the east side.

  8. Jacob says:

    But I thought Alden announced an agreement to clean up the Dump just before the election?

    Why all the hoopla at the big signing event if nothing was agreed?

    • Anonymous says:

      Dart like counterparties to agree to make a deal before they issue “their standard contract” with all the rescinding gotcha clauses.

  9. Dump Truck says:

    This should be the other way around – “Cabinet sits on the Dump”, this will focus their attention on the problem post haste.

  10. Anonymous says:

    My wife would kill me if I had a dump on the cabinet.

  11. Anonymous says:

    Put some white plastic on it. That will solve the problem.

  12. Anonymous says:

    TRANSPARENT MY A$$

  13. Anonymous says:

    Somewhat related to the dump, can we get any update on the plans for demolition of the former Hyatt?

    I don’t get why Dart wants that derelict eyesore right next to Camana Bay. Tear the damn thing down, plant some grass and trees for now.

    17.5 years since Ivan. Total silence.

    • Anonymous says:

      and royal palms and coconut joes….

    • Anonymous says:

      Ha! Dart is simply trying to nudge the Britannia owners, and simultaneously caught up in a legal dispute so will hide behind that ‘process’ as long as possible before having to do anything.

      If you thought Dart cared about aesthetics, just think – he’s the same group that built a school and now a housing project next to a dump.

      Money. that’s all it is.

      • Anonymous says:

        Guess this explains why all those old dump trucks carrying the old junk metal from the dump to the port have been allowed to roar around with only a small piece of plywood and a strap across the back of the loaded truck. Never see any police around to issue tickets but as the Decco/Dart group is in charge then it is alright since they control the island anyway.

        • Anonymous says:

          You cry babies need to shut up, Mr Dart is the greatest person we ever had in Cayman. Honorable Premier we need a statue put up for Mr Dart and a yearly holiday named after him.

  14. Corruption is endemic says:

    I feel better now…

  15. Anonymous says:

    Fix the damn dump Wayne.

    • Anonymous says:

      Resign, let the professional expats from the 1st world run this community and make Cayman great again.

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