Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL) will be establishing an environmental management department within the company and a Canadian consultancy firm and other personnel have been hired to assist with the process, Head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Dr. Vincent Adams revealed yesterday, lauding the development.
In the wake of complaints by Great Diamond residents that waste from the company’s biomethanation plant has been affecting them, coupled with the EPA’s findings that some of the company’s operations do not have the necessary permits, DDL has started the process to have an internal environmental oversight department.
“Following the complaints to the agency and our subsequent visits to the site and meeting with the company, it was found that they are operating about 10 facilities that should have had 10 individual permits but they did not have these,” Adams told Stabroek News in an interview.
“The EPA has to absorb some of that blame— and I will explain— but the company decided they will establish an environmental management department to focus on, well, environmental issues. They brought in a Canadian consultant to help with this process, they are looking at the best available technology and best qualified personnel to deal with these issues,” he added.
DDL was asked by this newspaper for an update and its Public Relations Officer, Alex Graham, said that the EPA’s audit was completed but that he believed the agency should address the findings.
“The audit has been completed and the EPA has shared its findings with DDL. However, we are opting to leave it to the EPA to address their findings as they deem appropriate,” Graham stated.
Last month, residents of Great Diamond filed a complaint with the EPA after years of their yards and roadways being continuously swamped by wastewater released from the biomethanation plant. As a result, the EPA ordered that the biomethanation plant cease operation.
The ceasing of operations was followed by an EPA team, led by Adams, visiting the company’s operational site at Diamond, as well as the surrounding community, to gain a firsthand understanding of the situation. It was during this visit that environmental infringements were observed and the EPA sought a complete review of all operations.
Adams told Stabroek News yesterday that his agency’s review of the operations found that DDL did not have the necessary permits for about 10 of its operations.
“As I said, the company had 10 operations which required 10 permits but they did not have these and were operating anyway and they cannot be wholly blamed. Putting it in context, most of the company’s operations were there even before the EPA’s existence. They had applied to the EPA for some permits—and be clear that all this was before I started here last year—and they never got replies from the EPA. So although they made applications and were not granted, they went ahead and operated. Yes, I accept that we were at fault in some ways,” the EPA Head explained.
“We found that there was effluent from these 10 facilities…and for example, they were washing some waste tanks and then dumping that directly into the Demerara River. They also went ahead, built some stuff that needed permits and things like that…,” he added.
In February of this year, Adams, who had taken up the position of Head of the agency late last year, had bemoaned that since his assumption to office and undertaking of an overall analysis of the agency, he was shocked at his findings. He had lamented that he found that not only were there only 97 persons on staff and that the agency cannot provide even basic materials to its employees but that 900 operational permits had expired due to lack of oversight.
“I asked for an update on all permits and it was discovered that nearly 900 permits had expired. That means we have nearly 900 operations just ongoing with no oversight. We do not know who is doing what. As you know, we currently have-and have had for the longest-a shortage of staff. We asked for increases in staffing and for the salaries of employees but was told that government doesn’t have and we should be innovative and find ways of meeting that need,” he had said.
Adams explained that some of DDL’s permit applications were found by his agency and it was noted that the EPA never replied to them.
He said that when DDL was told of some of the observations and findings of the EPA’s review, it was “very responsive and very cooperative” and they proposed the environmental department.
“The department will be their internal oversight and they will conduct their own inspections periodically and so on. We will be liaising with them and we will also be checking the water and air emissions from their stacks and so forth. We are going to be monitoring and measuring but their department will be required to do daily. I must tell you that this company has been very cooperative and committed to getting into compliance. They have been very forthcoming,” he said.
Adams explained that a schedule is planned “which would be very aggressive and which would mean them getting into compliance in the swiftest possible time for all 10 facilities”.
He said that even though the experience has not been a good one for residents, they can now have some relief that the problems would be corrected. “It was a terrible experience for the residents I am sure, but I am glad that there was a solution found where a problem that existed for a long while is now going to be corrected and fixed for the long terms. This means that all operations will now be brought into compliance with international standards,” he said.
