14 December 2023
A public consultation on a draft Waste Management Policy for St Helena has begun. The public consultation will close at 16:00 on Friday 5 January 2024.
St Helena Government (SHG) acknowledged the need for a Waste Management Policy and Implementation Plan in 2020, primarily to plan for environmental changes that are likely to impact the quality of Island life if left unmanaged. The policy was developed and implemented at that time, with a three year review period set for 2023. The new draft Waste Management Policy 2023 is a result of that review.
The draft Waste Management Policy 2023 aims to develop medium to long term goals to deal with the Island’s waste, and in a manner that is efficient and sustainable. This will ensure a good quality of life for residents and visitors both now and in the future, and bring benefit to the environment of St Helena.
Measures that have already been taken to mitigate the historical problems of poor waste management include (but are not limited to):
- Reusing items such as plastic bags, clothes and furniture that might otherwise be thrown away
- Recycling items like glass, cans, plastics and cardboard so they can be made into new products
- Treating organic waste such as fish waste, green waste and piggery effluent to convert it into compost to enhance local soil conditions
- Controlled landfilling of remaining waste after reusing, recycling and treating as much as possible
Waste recycling and treatment has also offered opportunities for the establishment of commercially viable private sector businesses on the Island such as Roddy Yon’s aluminium can recycling company, Yon’s Ally.
To achieve the aims and objectives of the draft Waste Management Policy 2023, several strategic actions will be delivered through an updated 2023 to 2030 implementation plan. These include:
- Implement a recyclable waste collection service from homes and businesses, focusing on high value and / or high volume dry wastes, such as aluminium drinks cans, plastics, cardboard and glass.
- Further develop and increase organic waste recycling into compost, maximising reuse of food, green and animal wastes.
- Design and implement environmentally sustainable waste management projects that support existing recycling activities and encourage new initiatives that improve and enhance the natural environment.
- Ensure that unavoidable landfilling is managed in a manner which does not significantly impact on public health or the environment.
- Develop and implement waste management regulations and codes of practice in line with the Environmental Protection Ordinance and Criminal Justice (Fixed Penalties) Ordinance.
Environmental Risk Manager, Mike Durnford, explains:
“If not properly managed, waste is a problem. It takes up valuable and limited landfill space, can cause pollution and other negative social impacts, uses up natural resources that could be used again, creates reputational impacts for our Island, and contributes towards climate change and a lasting problem for future generations.”
“Reusing and recycling more waste will help to reduce reliance on landfill and maximise the remaining useful life of Horse Point Landfill Site. This will increase St Helena’s reputation as the sustainable Island we aim to be, and contribute towards climate change mitigation.”
A copy of the draft Waste Management Policy 2023 (Three Year Review) is available under the Public Consultations section of the Publications page on the SHG website www.sainthelena.gov.sh/publications.
Comments should be sent to Environmental Officer Risk Management, Terri Clingham, via email through terri.clingham@sainthelena.gov.sh or by telephone on 24724.
The public are also invited to an open meeting to discuss the draft Waste Management Policy. This will be held in the Waste Management Services Office in the Post Office Yard, Jamestown from 13:00 to 15:00 on Tuesday 19 December 2023.
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