Mr Pinder called a press conference after families complained that the area was covered with smoke from what they thought was burning garbage.
He explained that the problem was not due to burning garbage but underground burning in the 500-ft by 500-ft construction and demolition section of the Solid Waste Disposal Facility off Harrold Road.
He said this burning is the result of natural combustion at the construction and demolition section of the landfill facility.
“Some of the materials in the refuse combine with naturally occurring substances underground and the result is the smoke,” he said.
When this happens, condensation of moisture in the air traps suspended particles in the atmosphere which is trapped by a warmer layer of air in the upper atmosphere and kept above the ground level as fog.
He stressed that the Ministry of Health does not burn garbage.
Mrs Melanie Mckenize, acting Director of Environmental Health, explained that while this burning is natural and continuous, certain weather conditions make the smog worse.
“You see it more in what we say are ‘draughty conditions’ because then there is no warm air to trap the particles and so you have conditions like this morning where there is a lot of smoke.”
She said that in warmer conditions the air traps the smoke so even though it may still be burning, the smog is not as obvious or widespread.
Mrs McKenize said the government is looking at several options to solve the problems. However, all are expensive and pose some risk.
“The three main things we are looking at are implosion, excavating or flooding,” she said.
With implosion, she explained, dynamite is used to destroy the contents of the site. It is then cleaned and a proper landfill would be built.
However, she noted that the use of dynamite might pose problems.
The second method of excavating the site entails removing combustible materials, recycling materials such as the metal from old stoves and fridges and then re-using the fill once the undesired materials are removed.
The third option would be to flood the site with high pressured water which would put out the underground burning.
The problem with that is that it introduces both hydrogen and oxygen to naturally occurring particles underground which may form other potentially dangerous reactions. Ms McKenzie said they will have to determine, along with local and international experts, which method or combination of methods would best solve the problem.
For now, Mr Pinder said, there is very little that can be done.
He advised residents to keep their windows and doors closed when the smoke occurs and to ensure that if they have respiratory problems they have medication on hand.
Mr Pinder emphasised that there is no short-term solution to the problem. He said the government will not use a band-aid approach. “We are where we are now because of poor solid waste management in the past because we had no other options then. Any time you take short-cuts you have to suffer the consequences,” he said.
Mr Pinder asked the public for their patience until the site can be dealt with and a proper landfill constructed.
By Cara Brennen, The Tribune
