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DEQ, task force discuss groundwater protection
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Posted on Aug 16 2000
In a move to facilitate the construction of a transfer station equipped with the recycling facility, the Division of Environmental Quality met with Solid Waste Task Force to make sure that the project will not affect the quality of groundwater in the area.
Work on the transfer station is expected to begin two months from now but the permit from the U.S. Army Corps in Guam on the water quality certification has yet to be issued.
The transfer station with a recycling facility will be established in a three-acre land in preparation for the closure of Puerto Rico Dump.
The task force will also set up three convenient centers to help residents in villages dispose of their garbage efficiently.
Implementation of tipping fee has been moved to Oct. 1 in order to offer all people and businesses hauling garbage to Puerto Rico Dump an estimate of their individual charges.
According to John Harder, manager of the Division of Solid Waste, the fees are volume-based beginning approximately at $10 per ton.
The government has been subsidizing waste disposal which has been costing the administration huge amount of money. The task force believes that implementing a tipping fee is one way to encourage people to recycle as it will no longer be cheaper to throw things away.
Tipping fee for businesses was decided to find a way to cover the expensive operations cost and encourage people to cut waste disposal.
The administration is targeting the closure of Puerto Rico Dumpsite at the end of the year 2000. At that time, the Marpi landfill should be in operation.
A Hawaii-based consulting firm, Harding Lawson Associates has been hired to carry out the design for a new landfill in Marpi and develop an island-wide solid waste management plan.
The CNMI is hoping to implement an Integrated Solid Waste Management which involves balancing available options based on total costs, environmental issues and local capabilities.
