Statia inspects households on proper waste collection
The Public Entity St. Eustatius, the Waste Management Facility and the Public Health Department are currently carrying out bin inspections to determine if households adhere to the guidelines with regards to the collection of waste. The results of these inspections will determine in which areas improvement is required.
As of March 2022, residents run the risk of being fined if their waste is not separated correctly.
The fine is based on article 10.4 of the Wet Volkshuisvesting, Ruimtelijke Ordening en Milieu BES. Some of the Statian households have already been inspected. The remaining houses will be visited when the number of COVID cases has decreased.
Less than 10%
Research shows that less than 10% of the inspected households is not (or not properly) separating waste. This is why the Unit Licenses, Enforcement and Control and the Public Health Department in a joint with the Waste Management Facility started inspections of all Statia bins to determine where improvement is necessary.
Recycling
The vision of the Public Entity St. Eustatius for waste management is to recycle as much waste as possible. Recycling is important as the materials can be used again, or the recyclables can be exported thereby reducing the amount of waste that needs to be burned.
Segregation of waste is important for properly disposing of the vast amount of garbage modern society produces in an environmentally conscious manner. Different components of waste have very different properties, and grouping them by type allows for proper processing, storage or export. The main categories are biodegradable and non-biodegradable wastes, but there are subcategories in each that are often separated as well.
Biodegradable wastes are quickly broken down by microorganisms in normal environmental conditions. This category is mainly food scraps. It is further split into animal-derived and plant-derived waste.
Non-biodegradable waste is the source of much of humanity’s waste disposal problem. Paper, metals, glass, plastic and textiles are all classified as non-biodegradable, due to the long or indefinite time it takes for them to break down naturally. Many of these wastes, but not all, can be recycled.
Community support
Statian residents are required to separate their waste. Every home and business own two different collection bins to separate the waste: a dark grey bin and an orange bin.
Attached pictures show instructions how to separate waste. Stickers of these images are available at the Waste Plant. If necessary new or an extra bins are available at the Waste plant at no costs.
The following link explains how the process works: https://youtu.be/ohxCGnkSEyQ
