Financial Secretary of The Bahamas, Simon Wilson recently spoke at a meeting of the Rotary Club of West Nassau. Among the topics he addressed in his presentation was the introduction of a $300 per ton waste charge for cruise ships docking in the country.
Wilson told Rotarians the money collected will be used to preserving and enhancing landfills in the family islands. So those of you who know the family islands…you go into Eleuthera, you go into Abaco, you go into the Berry Islands any place where there is significant cruise activity onshore you’ll see those landfills are under significant stress. They were not designed for the population a cruise ship would bring. For the Berry Islands for example, the main Berry Islands the landfill was designed for 2,000 people, now Coco Cay you have…for 3.5 to 4 million persons that waste has to go someplace.”
