Environment still the biggest challenge for Government…

As the New Year opens the new formation and its ministers have lots of work ahead in the area of stability, revitalizing the economy, creating jobs, restructuring its health care and building a new Hospital, while crime and corruption has become too much for a fragile justice ministry let alone the local prosecutor’s office. Finding money to balance the budget without further taxing its citizens is also a concern and Education has taken its biggest cut since we became Country in the Kingdom.

The biggest most underlining challenge for this government however, remains the environment… we are faced with a mountainous pile of garbage centered in the heart of Phillipsburg that is always visible, always springing fires spraying hazardous smoke over the island for its people to inhale and is always a subject of discussion. One of the most vocal critic of the land fill is now responsible to clean up and put to order a project he has always criticized, but the community awaits a structural and effective approach to managing our waste and an almost flawless plan of action to address what we have now.

The Nature foundation President Todzio Bervoets in his Year End report points out the gravity of the problem and the urgency of finding a solution. I quote “But the single biggest issue is the landfill. For the sake of this country, its people and the nature that makes us unique we must find an urgent solution to this environmental disaster”. Unquote. The Nature foundation calls it a disaster and it’s not to be taken lightly because of who it came from. We are all aware of the problem and is eagerly awaiting an immediate resolution. The rest of the ministries should show early progress within 100 days if they hit the ground running but the ministry of VROMI can’t talk its way to a solution but get to work.

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