Environmental Health
Ahearn moved to new job after ‘political’ removal as CO
(CNS): Deputy Governor Franz Manderson has confirmed that Jennifer Ahearn has been given a new role working in his office. In response to questions from CNS and other media houses about her recent removal as chief officer in the Ministry of Sustainability and Climate Resiliency, the government issued a press release on Wednesday, saying that […]
Special bulk waste collection added for holidays
(CNS): The Department of Environmental Health is conducting a special clean-up exercise over the next two weeks to remove bulk waste for the holidays after all. The annual seasonal clean-up traditionally conducted in December moved to May this year ahead of the hurricane season, but officials said this additional collection will help with the transition.
Public urged not to dump in absence of bulk clean-up
(CNS): Since the Department of Environmental Health moved the usual seasonal bulk-waste collection to May this year, there will be no pre-Christmas clean-up. The DEH is urging people not to illegally dump their big waste items but to make arrangements to take them to the George Town or Sister Islands landfills. The department said it […]
WTE due to open in 2027 a decade after bid
(CNS): The waste-to-energy facility is due to open in 2027, almost a decade after the Dart-led consortium was selected as the preferred bidder in October 2017. In the face of public frustration about how long the talks between the Cayman Islands Government and Dart have taken over the ReGen project, Deputy Chief Officer (Policy) Troy […]
EIA implies low environmental impact for ReGen WTE
(CNS): Given the poor conditions and historical problems associated with the George Town dump and the lack of a proper landfill liner, the development of a waste-to-energy facility is likely to benefit rather than harm the natural marine and terrestrial resources in the area, according to the draft environmental impact assessment (EIA). Around 1.7 acres […]
Draft EIA for dump project due this week
(CNS): Officials on the ReGen project, the proposed deal between the Cayman Islands Government and Dart to build waste-to-energy and recycling facilities at the George Town dump, have said the draft environmental impact assessment will be available to the public this Friday, 18 August. As a result, public meetings will begin next week.
Opposition blames premier for dump deal delays
(CNS): The PPM is blaming the government for the continued delays and increasing costs associated with the long-awaited and troubled deal with Dart for the proposed waste-management project, ReGen. Opposition Leader Roy McTaggart has criticised Premier Wayne Panton’s handling of the situation left by the Progressive administration, in which McTaggart served as finance minister.
Dump talks roll on as deal still not finalised
(CNS): Talks between Dart and the Cayman Islands Government over the waste-management project, ReGen, are continuing as another deadline passes, officials have confirmed. The date for the signing of the finalised contract for the waste-to-energy and recycling centre has been pushed back to the end of September, and the new project longstop date, when the […]
Clean-up campaign begins but no sign of dump deal
(CNS): A new campaign to crack down on littering has been launched by the Beautification Task Force (BTF) in collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism and Ports. The promotion was launched just as the most recent target date for the government to reach an agreement with Dart over the dump has come and gone, with no news yet of a deal.
Cabinet greenlights order to limit plastic imports
(CNS): During a meeting on 29 June, Cabinet approved the issuing of draft instructions for a prohibition order under the Customs and Border Control Act on importing some single-use plastics into Cayman. This was noted in the brief summary of the weekly meeting of the government’s inner circle, but the details of what will be […]
POF and CIS students fill up 18 bags of beach trash
(CNS): Grade 2 students from Cayman International School (CIS) took part in a beach clean-up at Safe Haven hosted by Protect Our Future (POF) last Thursday to mark World Oceans Day and to highlight the problem of single-use plastics in the Cayman Islands. As the country waits for the details of a proposed ban on eight […]