Govt. reviewing US$70mn solid waste facility

The government of Barbados is in the process of reviewing a proposal by a Canadian-led consortium to build a 140mn Barbados dollar (US$70.4mn) solid waste facility, local paper Nation reported. The country's economy could benefit from US$304mn raised over a 20-year period through capital investment, corporate taxes and reduction in the importation of fossil fuels and chemical fertilizers. A US$377,000 study, funded by the Canadian International Development Agency, audited the island's waste stream over a six-month period to determine the total volume of waste being generated by residents. The amount of waste the country generates was not provided, however the study results are higher than what was contemplated by the sewerage and solid waste project unit, the paper said. The facility will handle the waste stream from the Mangrove Pond landfill and liquid waste being disposed of at Lonesome Hill in St. peter. The biogas produced by the system will be transformed into electricity and heat. The system would also remove contamination from compost, to be safely reused for crop production. A hazardous waste station will also be constructed to secure this waste until it is shipped off-island for disposal. The system will allow the Greenland landfill to take in 90% less waste than contemplated, the paper added, significantly increasing the landfill's useful life. Both the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) and International Financial Corporation, a branch of the World Bank (WB), have offered to provide debt financing, should the project be approved. Potential local partners include the Barbados Light and Power authority, the Duraplast company, the Arawak Cement plant and the agriculture ministry. Barbados, the easternmost Caribbean island, has some 277,000 residents and its most important industries include sugar, rum, tourism and manufacturing.