The Tobago House of Assembly says it is taking steps to phase out the use of styrofoam on the island and is working with the private sector to do so on a voluntary basis.
THA official Linford Beckles told a Joint Select Committee of Parliament inquiring into waste management policies that while under the current constitutional arrangements the THA des not have the legislative clout to make changes, it is working outside the ambit of the law to address the problem.
He said while there are currently no taxes on styrofoam products coming into T&T, there are taxes on “environmental friendly alternatives,” which he said does not “align with environmental ideals and there is clear need for that to be addressed.” One of the ways, according to Beckles, is through legislation.
While the assembly does not have the legislative clout to make changes, he said “it is incumbent on us to make structured appeals to our counterparts in Trinidad to assist in this initiative.”
Beckles admitted there is a willingness to work in that direction. He said the THA was currently working with the Castara Tourism Association to make Castara the first styrofoam free village. The assembly is also working with the Crown Point Partnership Association to make Crown Point a much greener area, and the expectation is that on World Environment Day a few businesses will totally phase out the use of styrofoam and turn to alternatives.
Beckles said the THA was looking at two alternatives to replace the styrofoam, one is bagasse based and the other is corn based, both of which are coming out of the United States.
He said the Ministry of Planning was working with corporate interests “who produces styrofoam to assist in retooling plants to manufacture the containers in Trinidad and Tobago.”
Director of Operations of Ace Recycling Kevin Clarke told the Committee that the company is the largest waste paper recycling plant in the country and recycles 14 million pounds of paper annually.
He said the paper was collected at various locations throughout the country “brought back to the facility, sorted into grades, bailed into half tonne bales, and shipped across the world to be used as feedstock.”
The cost per metric tonne for the paper is between US$50 to US$300 “depending on the grade.”
The company also supplies material to the tissue mill at the Arima Industrial Estate, “and they take the higher grade paper to make a recycled product,” Clarke said.