EPA approves Virgin Islands solid waste program

As part of its continuing efforts to help the Caribbean develop solid waste program capacity, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has approved the U.S. Virgin Islands’ municipal solid waste landfill permit program. The EPA says this approval is a significant accomplishment for the territory and enables the expansion of existing landfills, the construction of new landfills, and provides for design and operational flexibilities such as alternative daily cover and alternative financial assurance mechanisms. According to the EPA, these authorities are essential to ensure that solid waste can be safely and sustainably managed.

Before making its final decision to approve the U.S. Virgin Islands’ program, EPA took public comments for 60 days and held three public hearings in July 2019. EPA says that most commenters supported the approval and several requested clarifications on the roles associated with U.S. Virgin Islands’ solid waste management and the implications of approval. EPA has provided responses, including an overview on the statutory role of the Virgin Islands and the federal government with respect to solid waste management and the required compliance with landfill regulations established to protect human health and the environment.

“I am very pleased that we were able to finalize our decision to authorize the U.S. Virgin Islands’ solid waste landfill permit program,” EPA Regional Administrator Pete Lopez says. “This approval empowers the U.S. Virgin Islands government to make necessary improvements to its solid waste management system and facilitates the territory’s path toward a resilient future. EPA is working continuously with the U.S. Virgin Islands to help it build capacity to reduce waste, prepare for managing waste from future storms, increase recycling and promote a comprehensive and robust solid waste management program.”

"With much excitement, the United States Virgin Islands reached a historic moment by receiving the authority to permit landfills,” U.S. Virgin Islands Division of Environmental Protection Director Kathlyn P. Worrell-George says. “I am ecstatic that the Division of Environmental Protection team and I were able to play a major role in such a triumphant achievement. The territory has come a long way, and we are pleased.”

The EPA is continuing to assess landfills throughout the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. Working with federal, territorial, community and education partners, EPA has convened stakeholders, facilitated dialogue, provided technical resources and supplied information to empower local decision-makers to move ahead with a solid waste management program for the Caribbean. To support these efforts as part of the U.S. Virgin Islands’ hurricane recovery, $10 million in supplemental funds have been allocated to the territory.

In addition, the results of a municipal solid waste characterization field study, funded by EPA and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and completed by the University of the Virgin Islands, are expected to be released in February. This study is the first step in developing and updating waste management programs and evaluating ways to reduce and manage waste and cut disposal costs. In addition to helping create an integrated waste management program, the data collected will inform the government of the U.S. Virgin Islands in its efforts to craft recycling policies.