Guanapo Landfill Remediation underway

 

The Guanapo Landfill and its environs were a hive of activity in December 2020 as the first phase of implementation of an Environmental Risk Management Plan (ERMP) commenced. From December 4 to December 17, 2020, a cross-functional team of international and local environmental experts conducted an assessment of the water quality at the Guanapo Landfill and two tributaries of the Guanapo River: the El Cedro Stream and Maturita River.

 The objective of this US $650,000.00 ERMP is improving the environmental conditions surrounding the Guanapo Landfill and recommending areas of improving the site model to mitigate against potential health and environmental hazards. Findings from this phase of the study will among other things, identify other possible sources of pollution outside of the Guanapo Landfill, from activities such as farming, washing of clothing, light industry, recreation or wastewater dumping. Collectively, this will inform a Risk Communication Plan, designed to educate the residents and the wider public on potential risks and proper river usage to mitigate against potential threats via a series of Workshops carded for 2021.

 The ERMP forms part of a larger Remediation Plan for the Guanapo Landfill under a regional project entitled “Development and Implementation of a Sustainable Management Mechanism for Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in the Caribbean”. The regional project aims to manage levels of exposure to POPs which are of international concern due to their adverse effects.

The multi-stakeholder team consisted of the Ministry of Planning and Development, which acts as the national Focal Point for the project and Chair of the National Project Working Committee (PWC). The Ministry of Planning and Development was represented by Ms. Keima Gardiner, Chair of the PWC. Additional members included Tauw bv, the Netherlands based environmental consulting and engineering firm contracted for the project; the Trinidad and Tobago Solid Waste Management Company Limited (SWMCOL); and the Basel Convention Regional Centre for Training and Technology Transfer for the Caribbean (BCRC-Caribbean, the project Executing Agency.