St. Maarten is being provided with technical assistance in its cross-border cooperation programme for the 11th European Development Fund (EDF) Caribbean Regional Programme on Resilience, Sustainable Energy and Marine Biodiversity (see related story). This reportedly entails identifying and implementing joint projects with the French side, “as well as to deliver the Cole Bay wastewater treatment plant.”
European funding to the tune of 8 million euros was made available for this since 2008 and later increased to 11 million. However, finding an available and suitable location far enough away from residential neighbourhoods and in compliance with European Union (EU) norms proved difficult.
At one point there was even a proposal to create an island housing such a facility in Simpson Bay Lagoon near the causeway, which sparked concerns about nature conservation and the image this would portray to guests in that very visible spot also frequented by many tourists. A flare-up regarding the Oyster Pond border dispute with France involving the former Captain Oliver’s Restaurant and Marina caused yet more delay.
But in April 2019 then-Dutch State Secretary of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations Raymond Knops mentioned a possible “breakthrough” regarding the purification plant. This was followed by an announcement at the end of May 2020 from St. Maarten’s Minister of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure VROMI Egbert Doran that land for this purpose had been allocated behind GEBE in Cay Bay.
He said at the time that various related studies, including an environmental impact assessment, were expected to be completed by the close of the year. The minister also mentioned part of the money now coming from the Dutch-sponsored Trust Fund managed by the World Bank.
Prime Minister Silveria Jacobs in today’s paper called developing a cooperation platform between Dutch and French a “significant component in this journey.” She did not think getting that done before the Treaty of Concordia anniversary on March 23 as desired was likely, but hopefully it won’t take another 14 years before something tangible is finally done about the continued pollution by untreated sewage both onshore and from boats in the lagoon.
