The Municipality of Georgetown wishes to apologize profusely for the inconvenience and potential health hazard faced by the residents who live in the area contiguous to the Le Repentir Landfill dumpsite.
When we had the last fire, we put in place a number of measures to avoid a repeat of this situation; those measures included security and improved earth cover. The litter-pickers were summoned to several meetings chaired by the Mayor and given fair guidelines for the activities at the said dumpsite. All the above was done within our limited human and financial resources.
The public needs to be aware of all aspects of this unfortunate situation. First, under circumstances beyond the municipality’s control, this landfill site was established in the year 1993, and was expected to last for two years. Second, the new IDB/governmental arrangement should have been completed by 2007. We have been told that the new landfill facility will be opened some time during 2010.
We have therefore in the intervening period tried to maintain the existing landfill facility which receives waste, including an increase in o1d tyres from not only Georgetown city but areas outside of the city, in excess of 260 tons per day.
Third, and very important, the municipality as a result of overseas contacts secured the interest of an operator willing to help manage the landfill site to produce electricity, with an undertaking that residents in the contiguous areas should benefit from reduced electricity cost.
The municipality wrote the government seeking its support and permission to proceed with this project. This of course required GPL/government agreement to put the extra electricity generated into that national grid.
The Mayor, having not received a reply from the ministry, took the opportunity at a meeting with the Head of State to raise this matter. At that meeting the Head of State expressed a preference to pursue the matter of hydropower.
The municipality makes no further comment on this reaction. The public must recognize the efforts of the municipality to put the landfill site to productive use.
The original IDB project envisaged funds for the fencing of the entire area, but that aspect of the project was removed to maintain the original cost.
Yours faithfully,
Robert Williams
Deputy Mayor
