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EPA mulls closure of N/A, Byderabo landfills – alternative sites being sought
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is giving serious consideration to the closure of two landfills—the Esplanade in New Amsterdam and Byderabo in Cuyuni-Mazaruni.
Head of the Sanitation Management Unit, Gordon Gilkes
This comes after the environmental agency stipulated new landfill and dumpsite criteria and a list of all landfill sites was created. This list was used to determine which would be closed or upgraded to the EPA standards. It was discovered that both of the landfills happen to be situated close to residential areas.
Head of the Sanitation Management Unit, Gordon Gilkes noted that there is a pressing issue to close the Esplanade facility, mainly because a synthetic track is adjacent to the site. With regards to the Byderabo site, which initially would have developed into swamp area, Gilkes added that residents built their houses close to their site.
It should be noted that living in close proximity to the dumpsites and landfills can have significant health risks. Multiple results have shown a strong association between Hydrogen Sulphide (used as a surrogate for all pollutants co-emitted from the landfills) and deaths caused by lung cancer, as well as deaths and hospitalizations for respiratory diseases. It is for this reason that the EPA is considering the closure of both of the sites.
Gilkes continued, however, that they have found alternative sites for both areas, but they need to be fully developed before the transition could be done.
The sanitation head explained that waste management is set to be the major undertaking for the Ministry of Communities this year, as Guyana pursues a green development path.
Gilkes said that his unit was looking at crafting a waste management plan for Georgetown and the other towns. The idea, he said, was to have each town more involved in managing its waste.
“I think that’s important in terms of aligning the programme with the Green State Development Strategy…which talks about having environmental issues dealt with. Bringing those landfill sites under proper management will help to eliminate the environmental degradation that may exist,” Gilkes said, who was at the time addressing the ministry’s two-day senior staff conference which opened on Tuesday.
He added that a major issue the Unit encountered last year was meeting the EPA’s criteria for landfill and dumpsites. Priority areas for 2020 also include continuing works on six existing sites, including the Haags Bosch facility.
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