The Corito Landfill Site, which occupies a large acreage along Anguilla’s southern coast, and receives tons of garbage on a daily basis, is being looked into by the Government from an investment and development point.
The dumpsite is now at its capacity level with piles of solid waste material of every description, already buried – and tons exposed with little chance perhaps of being covered unless there is an abundance of available marl.
The Corito Landfill Site came up at a meeting of the Executive Council on December 12, 2019. The particular EXCO Minute, 19/258, is entitled: “Investment in Waste Management to rehabilitate the waste management operations of the Corito Landfill Site”.
The minutes stated that the Executive Council “commended the Environmental Health Department for continuing to manage the operations at the Corito Landfill Site despite major challenges.”
The minutes added that EXCO “endorsed the business case presented to be submitted to the FCO (Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London) for funding of a consultancy.” The study is “aimed at the development of a long-term strategy to rehabilitate the waste management operations of the Corito Landfill Site.”
The Council’s minutes did not provide further details. The Anguillian newspaper was unable to obtain the explanatory information from the relevant sources who could not be contacted.
There have been various efforts, over the years, to improve the management of the site which, instead of a dumpsite, could easily perhaps have accommodated a hotel project with great ocean views. Notwithstanding its current use, the area is earmarked for a deepwater harbour and related facilities. That’s why, perhaps, it is generally referred to as a landfill rather than a dumpsite.
It is worth mentioning that, in 2014, a previous Government of Anguilla had considered a proposal, from Global Green Energy of the Americas, for a waste energy project at the landfill that was promulgated as a means of generating electricity. However, the proposal quickly fell through.
