I’m wondering why recycling is not mandatory in Cayman Islands. We all know garbage is a problem worldwide. But looking at “Mount Trashmore”, it’s huge here. In the past we had two garbage collections weekly, cut back to one now. Why doesn’t DEH replace the second collection with a recyclable one? I do take my recycling weekly to supermarket points of collection but have noticed around the island loads of people don’t (laziness probably). Wouldn’t a collection make more people realise everyone needs to work together to preserve paradise?

Auntie’s answer: I have dealt with several good questions on recycling in Cayman but am always happy to discuss this topic again. This is really one of those situations where everyone should be on board with doing whatever they can to reduce waste since it affects everyone who lives here.

I took your question to the Department of Environmental Health and it was answered by Mark Rowlands, Assistant Director for Solid Waste.

For the big picture of legally requiring the population to recycle, he explained, “Mandatory recycling would have to be a decision/request of Cabinet and would need to be established through the current legislation based usually on a feasibility analysis that identifies costs, programmes, infrastructure, and implementation planning.”

I realise that is a lot to digest, but he did add that recycling services currently in the works through the Integrated Solid Waste Management System (ISWMS) process (more on that in a bit) are to be “significantly improved within the next few years”.

When it comes to pickup of garbage from residences, Mr Rowland said the frequency is limited by the available equipment and personnel. But all is not lost, as the DEH is reviewing a preliminary draft of the “Zero Litter Cayman Plan”, which is a programme to have twice-a-week collection that includes garbage once a week and recyclables once a week at curbside.

When the plan is complete, the DEH director, and chief officer and minister with responsibility for environmental health will go through it and decide the way forward. Mr Rowland hopes the whole process will be completed within six months.

Of relevance to your question, he pointed out that the plan discusses providing totes (similar to glass-collection containers at the supermarket depots) for all single-family residences across Grand Cayman for both garbage and recycling.

“All of this containerised waste and recyclable materials would be collected with hydraulic tippers fitted on the existing fleet of trucks (no litter and easily managed by collectors),” he said. That kind of programme would cost between $2 million and $3 million if sponsored fully by the government and much less if sponsored by individual homeowners, he noted.

He also addressed the recycling containers at supermarkets in Cayman. “Unattended drop-off recycling depots at supermarkets are a first step towards a better recycling system,” he said. “Future improvements to these could involve having attendants, carrying out more promotion and education programmes, etc.” But he also noted that such depots have been proven to have limited success and that curbside collection would “raise the bar considerably”.

Mr Rowlands then reflected on the long view of waste management. “We also need to consider the proposed waste-to-energy facility that will require a supply of waste to ensure it is efficient and maintains the required threshold under contract. Too much recycling may draw too many high heat-value waste components away from the facility, reducing its efficiency. The goal of the government is to balance waste diversion with energy recovery and disposal to ensure the efficient management of waste across the island through an integrated system.”

He suggested that anyone interested in learning more about the ISWMS and the many factors affecting decisions regarding waste management should go to the ISWMS page on the Ministry of Health website.