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The Abaconian

September 15, 2008

 

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Central Abaco District Council 28 Aug

The meeting began with allegations made
by members that sums in the neighbour-
hood of $40,000 were misappropriated by
each of the last two councils. Specific in-
formation was not given although the topic
was not readily dismissed.

Members wanted assurances that no
monies were left owing by the last Coun-
cil to be paid by funds from this Council’s
budget. It was intimated that a substantial
sum may be still due to Abaco Hardware
from hurricane preparations four or five
years ago.

Extensive discussions centered over the
amount owed Three D’s Signs for traffic
and township signs being erected through-
out the townships. Although the work was
authorized by the last Council, the fabri-
cation, installation and payment for work
completed in July are this Council’s re-
sponsibility. It was said that the last Coun-
cil did not commit beyond their term of of-
fice. Although the work is on-going, it was
brought out that the present Council has
the option of cancelling the work which is
being paid for as the signs are delivered
and erected.

It was decided to invite the owner of
Three D’s Signs to the next Council meet-
ing to clarify the status of the work and the
estimated funding required. It was believed
that the figure of $120,000 was given to
the previous Council as the amount for the
completed signs in the four towns.

Questions arose over a short section of
fencing erected at the preferred parking

Local Government at work

 

area at the airport but which was subse-
quently removed. It was installed in an at-
tempt to resolve parking and traffic issues
in that area. Administrator Cephas Cooper
said it was paid for from the discretionary
funds available to the South Abaco Mem-
ber of Parliament.

Councillors noted that a police presence
at the airport, as required, would have
avoided the need for the fence. While dis-
cussing the airport, it was noted that fill
was donated by Bahama Hot Mix and was
graded free by Big Cat Equipment. This
filled a frequent mud-hole immediately
west of the terminal.

On another topic, Councillor Mike
Malone gave a short summary of the man-
agement requirements expected of the con-
tractor selected for the new solid waste
landfill. These are the minimum require-
ments taken from the ten pages of the ten-
der documents devoted to the site manage-
ment and subject to change. [This is not a
comprehensive list. |

¢ A $50,000 bond and adequate insur-
ance is required.

¢ The contractor must be competent in
managing this operation.

© The government chipper must be prop-
erly maintained.

e The incoming refuse must be pushed
three times per week.

e The leachate must be managed and
distributed properly.

¢ The entire area including the approach
road must be kept clean.

¢ The hours open to the public are 6
a.m. - 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and
Saturday mornings. Mr. Malone felt that
the schedule should accommodate the pub-
lic on a seven-day basis.

OF THE

¢ Separate areas are to be maintained for
items either too bulky for the main cell or
which may have recycling potential: tires,
batteries, major household appliances, junk
vehicles, etc.

¢ A representative must be appointed by
Council to oversee the operation. It was
suggested that Abaco’s newly appointed
District Engineer, Mr. John Schaeffer, be
Council’s representative.

¢ The contract will be for a three-year
period. When fully operational, the site is
expected to accept all of Abaco’s trash and
refuse.

Councillor Ross Thompson then gave
Statistics found in the tender documents
which implied that the contractor could
expect about 100 cubic yards or 39 tons
each week. He expressed surprise that the
four-year projection gave no allowance
for increased volume to parallel Abaco’s
growth.

Furthermore, he had researched the
amount of trash presently generated by
Central Abaco. Since 90 percent of Central
Abaco’s refuse is moved in 30 cubic yard
containers, it was fairly easy to determine
the volume that the site will get from this
area alone. The refuse from South Abaco
and North Abaco must be added to these
figures.

In round numbers the present weekly
amount in cubic yards and origin is:

300 Hope Town

180 Man-O-War

360 Guana Cay

30 Matt Lowe’s Cay

750 Bahama Waste

450 E & D Waste

150 (Est) Murphy & Dundas Towns
300 Marsh Harbour

210 Abaco Club, Winding Bay
2730 Estimated weekly total

Even allowing for inaccuracies in deter-
mining this figure, it was obvious to Mr.
Thompson that the figures given in the ten-
der are grossly understated. He said that
the three cays alone now send 780 cubic
yards of refuse each week.

It was noted that these figures would not
materially impact the operation of the facil-
ity other than the cell may fill sooner than
expected. However, prospective contrac-
tors must be made aware of the anticipated
volume.

Mr. Thompson noted that the cell will be
30 feet high when filled, fully compacted
and covered. His information indicated that
a D8 tractor compacts two cubic yards of
typical trash to approximately one yard.

In view of the magnitude of the land-
fill operation, further discussion was put
off until the next Council meeting when a
representative from Environmental Health
from Nassau is expected to be present.

Councillors were then shown a petition
with 91 signatures asking that the solid waste
landfill be opened as soon as possible.

Please see Local Gov. Page 15

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B.L.C, takes this opportunity to give you these valuable
conservation tips to help reduce your electric bill.

You may be surprised to learn that the water heater is

a large user of energy in most homes. In fact, the av-
erage household spends about $45 per month at our
current rates to heat water. And larger families spend
even more. However, there are a number of things you
can do to conserve energy and trim your water heating
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Use less hot water. Using less water provides your big-
gest opportunity for savings

Adjust the temperature on your water heater. Lower
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The Bahamas Electricity Corporation - Abaco :

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