Solid Waste Case Study: Challenges with Illegal Dumping Elimination in the Community of Santa Rita in Guánica, Puerto Rico

Solid Waste Case Study: Challenges with Illegal Dumping Elimination in the Community of Santa Rita in Guánica, Puerto Rico

Written By: Edwin Vázquez-Asencio, Sustainable Materials Management Specialist

BACKGROUND: This community was referred by the municipality a year before the grant period. The community has had a problem with illegal dumping and improper management of debris and waste, even when the municipality has services for debris collection and curbside for waste. Three areas were commonly used as illegal dumping sites. The largest impacted area is a 0.6-mile dirt road, with debris on both sides of the path that has been used for illegal dumping for more than 4 decades according to RCAP Technical Assistant Provider (TAP) evaluation.

THE CHALLENGE: The place is used for illegal dumping by small contractors, community residents and others. Bulky items such as furniture, mattress, home appliances, auto parts, e-waste, construction and demolition debris (C&D), vegetative materials, domestic waste, and animal carcasses are commonly dumped on this site. Motor oils, refrigerator fluids, paints, acrylic roof sealers have been found or are part of the materials in the site. Many of them are possible sources of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC’s), (hydrofluorocarbons) and heavy metals as well as other materials with constituents likely to contain PFAS, lead, and other regulated contaminants.

Vectors of diseases like the “Flesh Fly” (members of the subfamily Sarcophagidae), mosquitoes, cockroaches, rodents, mongoose (Herpestes auropuctatus – principal carrier of rabies in Puerto Rico), feral animals and community pets are commonly found in the area, creating a public health concern. In the rainy season the ditch behind the dumping site receives the runoff from the site and guides it to the community and the farms nearby. Many wells are in the area for agricultural purposes and drinking water that could be susceptible to any contamination from the dumping activities. The place is on the borderline of two municipalities and the road is not well defined as public or private property, creating additional challenges for investing in restoration by any of the municipal entities. The TAP presented the case to USDA looking for options for the community.

THE APPROACH & SOLUTION: An assessment was performed, and the results presented to the community and other stakeholders like the municipality, the PR Department of Natural and Environmental Resources, the PR Police Department, Public Works, and others.

The TAP presented the following plan of five steps to address the problem for short term, medium, and long-term results.

  1. Education and awareness of the community and establish a working group.
  2. Clean up to remove all dumped materials and dispose of them correctly and collect data about the materials removed for developing a long-term action plan.
  3. Add value, changing the appearance and promote the use of the area by the community as a walking place or other recreational activities.
  4. Maintenance plan to establish an adoption plan of the area and law enforcement support to reduce illegal dumping activities.
  5. Empower the community to develop activities that keep the area clean, organized, and build their capacity to address the situation and get financial support.

In the presentation for all the stakeholders and working group, the TAP covered important topics that included: PFAS, E-waste, Volatile Organic Compounds, Household Hazardous Waste and Vectors of diseases among other related information to create awareness of the problem and to validate and justify immediate action by the stakeholder group.

THE IMPACT: The community leaders are engaging in the remediation of the area used for illegal dumping for decades. The municipality and other stakeholders received technical instruction about the proper management of the area, and information about the problems associated with this situation including constituent materials and public health concerns that need attention. The community is receiving the skills and guidance to address the problem in conjunction with the stakeholders. This is an ongoing project in which the key stakeholders such as the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources, the PR Police Bureau, the Municipality of Guánica and other are looking for alternatives with RCAP Solutions to help the community and eliminate this illegal dumping site. RCAP discussed the project with the local USDA Staff and Washington representatives to help these disadvantaged people and will continue the process to identify resources to tackle the problem with them. RCAP believes in community empowerment, capacity building, and sustainable management of their resources. These foundations complement RCAP’s technical support and lead the community to a better future and the solution of a problem they have been facing for decades. We are here for them!