Garbage still burning; officials ponder cure
It’s a story that we’ve covered more times that we care to admit. If you live in Belize City and haven’t smelled the stinking smoke of the garbage dump, don’t get complacent; it’s only a matter of time until the wind changes.
Patrick Jones, Reporting
One month after the City’s garbage site on the Western Highway burst into flames, officials of the Sanitation Department are still trying to devise a way of extinguish the fire.
Now, the Belize Defence Force is the latest institution to join the battle.
Brigadier General Cedric Borland, B.D.F Commandant
“It was a directive from Cabinet that the B.D.F. assist in extinguishing the fire here at the garbage dump. I was able to get in touch with people from CISCO Construction, the City Council, Ministry of Works and the Fire Service to come out here and let’s do a sight survey and come up with options on how we can extinguish the fire.”
Borland says the sight survey conducted last week came up with different scenarios, but only one which presented the best long-term solution.
Brigadier General Cedric Borland
“We’ve looked at the area out here, and CISCO has been very helpful, they have actually sent in an excavator out here, they have dug some trenches and we have looked at one option of flooding the area with water in these trenches and see if that is going to extinguish the fire. That was one of the options that we looked at. The other option that was considered is actually putting soil over the garbage and that would have extinguished the fire too as well. We have a clear demonstration of that where some soil has already been dumped in a particular area and the fire seems to have been extinguished.”
But while covering the area with sand appears to be the likely way to go, technical reservist with the B.D.F. Cadet Henderson, who also happens to be the nations Chief Engineer, says that may not completely solve the problem.
Cadet Henderson, Technical Reservist, B.D.F.
“A trial section has been executed where we looked at a quarter acre section that was blind with sand, which seems to have worked. This area has deposits that seem to approach twelve feet and as such maybe one method that works in one are may not work in another.”
Henderson says that after this whole nasty mess is cleaned up, the lessons learnt will form the basis for future reference, should another fire break out at the site.
Meanwhile, Director of the City’s Sanitation Department, Lawrence Ellis, appeals to area residents for more patience while the Council works to alleviate their suffering.
Lawrence Ellis, Director, Sanitation Department
“Well, its not that we have not been trying to get it out. We have dumped tons of water on this place; we have dug trenches in it to get water to it. It’s clear that water is not working; the depth of the garbage is too deep. We are putting our heads together and we are hoping that within weeks we could get this place covered over.”
The proposal for putting out the fire, including cost estimates, is expected to be presented to Cabinet shortly. Ellis estimates that to date over twenty thousand dollars has been spent in trying to extinguish the underground blaze.
