POND ISLAND–The Council of Ministers has approved the US $25 million grant agreement for the Emergency Debris Management Project focused on cleaning up the country, putting out fires at the dump and removing the remaining shipwrecks in Simpson Bay Lagoon. Better management of the dump and closing down the “Hurricane Irma” dump are also part of the project.
Prior to the official signing of the grant agreement with the World Bank, Prime Minister Leona Romeo-Marlin said government is taking steps to prepare fire suppression activities and has adopted measures to improve the dump via a public tender for a new management team.
Government is conducting a survey in the neighbourhood next to the dump to prepare possible relocation of the people living the there. This survey is necessary to prepare for the fire suppression activities that will address the subsurface fires on the dump, said the prime minister.
Government is therefore looking into options for closing off part of the neighbourhood. In working with the World Bank, government “is committed to comprehensive safety and security standards and is asking residents for their full cooperation with the survey.”
“Dump fires and related smoke have been a major concern for the people living in the area and the wider community of St. Maarten. We need to get these fires under control and with the help of the World Bank we can finally resolve this problem once and for all,” she said.
Several missions of the World Bank and the European Investment Bank are in the country this week. They will work with the Interim Recovery Committee, ministries and other stakeholders on Emergency Recovery Project I, the upcoming Enterprise Recovery Project and the Airport Reconstruction Project.
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/83605-govt-approves-us-25m-emergency-debris-project
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