A Solid Plan for Solid Waste

Increasing volumes of trash, heightened awareness of the long-term consequences of improper disposal and limited land area mean that solid waste is a growing problem throughout the Pacific. As most Islands grapple with this seemingly insurmountable problem, the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas has put together a solid waste management plan, the linchpin of which is a state-of-the-art landfill that any community might envy.

The 43-acre landfill is in Saipan's northern district of Marpi and, along with a nearby transfer station, cost US$18.46 million. The open pit itself covers 27 acres and is divided into three cells. An impermeable high-density polyethylene liner prevents leachate from seeping into ground water or finding its way into the ocean. Water accumulating within the liner is pumped out (on the side of the landfill farthest from the shore) and into a separate treatment pond before it is tested and disposed of when acceptably clean. Soil cover is applied to the refuse daily to minimize noxious fumes and to ward off rats, dogs and insects.

To increase the life of the landfill-estimated at 20 to 25 years-an active program to reduce the volume of waste that goes into it is underway. Trash haulers and individuals can avoid the tipping fees by taking recyclables-aluminum, glass, paper-to a collection station run by Ericco/Maeda Joint Venture.

The aluminum and paper are shipped to Asian scrap markets. Glass is ground to sand for use in construction. The government subsidizes recycling costs and the program is aided by an island-wide awareness campaign.

The new Saipan landfill is one of the largest and most ecologically friendly in the Pacific.

"We average about 100 tons of paper and aluminum every month," says Eric Cruz, owner of Ericco Enterprises. The company also processes and ships appliances and automobiles off island for recycling.

Cloth scraps from Saipan's garment factories, estimated by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency at 30 tons per day, are also recycled. Though the scrap market for cloth is limited, the recycling program-funded by tipping fees and government subsidy-has reduced the cloth going into the landfill by more than half. Green waste, such as leaves, grass and branches, is separated and turned into mulch with the assistance of a chipper.

In order to provide funds for the operation of the landfill, as well as its eventual closure, possible emergency cleanup and for the final disposition of the old dump in the Puerto Rico section of Saipan, a separate "Solid Waste Management Revolving Account" was established in December 2002. Funding for the account includes a 0.42 percent Environmental Beautification Tax on all consumer goods sold in the CNMI as well as tipping fees. Residential customers may dispose of one cubic yard of waste per week at no charge.

Construction of the landfill stalled for more than 10 years after it was first proposed in a 1988. During the interim, political bickering about alternate sites kept the project from moving forward. The matter became more urgent as the now-closed Puerto Rico dump became increasingly offensive and it was reaching maximum capacity.

The 19-acre dump at Puerto Rico sits on the shore of Saipan's Tanapag Lagoon adjacent to the commercial port. It is bounded by Beach Road, the island's main thoroughfare, and is within a mile of the Hyatt Regency Hotel and the Garapan tourist area.

"That dump has done tremendous damage to the marine life in that area," says Gov. Juan N. Babauta. "It was an environmental disaster."

The Puerto Rico Dump began as a military disposal site for heavy metal scrap in the years after World War II. Since the mid-1950s the area was used for municipal waste, though it did not become the island's primary disposal site until the 1970s-when burning trash and ocean dumping were outlawed. At the same time, the economic boom of the 1980s and 1990s was producing a boom in the volume of trash produced in the community. The first official estimate of trash volume was 128 tons per day in 1994; in 2003 it had grown to 320 tons per day.

In 1994, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued an administrative order, based on violations of the Clean Water Act, that the dump be closed. Following a spectacular dump fire in 1996 (that included exploding war-era ordnance that was part of the landfill's contents) dredge material from the harbor was used to cover the refuse. In 1996, the height of the dump was about 18 feet above sea level. Today the closed dump rises about 85 feet above sea level, without much room to grow.

"It was pyramiding out," says Brian Bearden, an environmental engineer with the Department of Environmental Quality. "The top was getting smaller and smaller."

Shortly after Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio began his third term in 1998 (following an eight-year hiatus) he created the Solid Waste Task Force to expedite the construction of the new landfill and the closure of the Puerto Rico Dump. A request for proposal for the design of the new landfill was published in July 1998.

Due to delays caused by procurement protests, the contract was awarded 10 months later to Harding ESE and the design was completed in August 2000. Bid protests again delayed construction until after Tenorio had left office. The Babauta administration considered the Puerto Rico closure a "paramount concern."

Groundbreaking on the new landfill took place in February 2002. The project was carried out by a joint venture of Dick Pacific and Pacific Drilling. The Marpi landfill was finally opened in February 2003.

The next solid waste project for the CNMI government is the final closure of the Puerto Rico dump. "It may have stopped receiving trash, but it's not closed," says Bearden. "And part of the EPA order is closing Puerto Rico dump." Options currently being studied include covering with a liner and stabilizing the area, removing the trash and restoring the site to its original condition, and constructing a recreation area on top of the site-the preferred choice.

Finally for the CNMI, a working solid waste plan is in place and the island, after years of delay, now has a landfill with cutting-edge design that will keep the commonwealth's land and water safe from contamination into the foreseeable future.