Is it really accurate or is it just meant to catch the attention of readers and those who were never in favor of the receiver taking over the operations in the first place?
I say that because the Office of Public Accountability is quoted as saying that “if not for their [GBB’s] intervention, the government of Guam would remain hard pressed to accomplish such goals: new state-of-the-art municipal solid waste landfill, a modern solid waste management system and the closure of the Ordot dump.”
Yes, it is expensive because of the politics that goes with every decision that any administration takes. That is why there is more federal receivership that has occurred within GovGuam over the last eight years such as the one at the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse and threats from U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Department of Education to respective local agencies to do the same.
Surely, there could have been cheaper alternatives to the landfill such as an incinerator but Sen. Ben Pangelinan and attorney Mike Phillips challenged the alleged sweetheart contract with GRRP and succeeded in the local courts.
Maybe that was an illusory victory because while incinerators are frowned upon on the mainland, northern European nations such as Denmark are retrofitting incinerators to not only take care of the trash problem but to generate its power needs, as well. Apparently, there is technology at present that would eliminate the dangerous pollutants that a typical incinerator would spew into the atmosphere.
Finally, maybe the headline was accurate in retrospect as it was a collective failure on everyone’s part to move forward in a positive way to seek the best alternative to satisfy Guam’s solid waste needs.
MATT PHILIPS
Mangilao, Guam
