Tuesday’s front page photo of caretaker Dutch State Secretary Raymond Knops and Island Governor Jonathan Johnson with a solar farm in the background served as stark reminder that while both Saba and St. Eustatius have delved into alternative energy, St. Maarten is yet to make any significant strides in this area.
Aside from environmental considerations, current oil prices and recent distribution issues in the eastern United States are added reasons to seriously explore gradually switching to more sustainable electricity production methods. One member of parliament (MP) recently even suggested not approving the purchase of another engine by utilities provider GEBE, but especially for a country with a one-pillar tourism economy, ensuring sufficient capacity to handle any peaks in demand remains essential.
The government-owned company did have the intention a few years ago to cover the public parking lots on Pondfill with solar panels, but wanted a land transfer to secure its property. However, the then-responsible Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure VROMI minister disagreed.
Meanwhile, the rest of the Dutch Caribbean is making progress, with the ABC islands (Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao) having constructed windmill parks. Although the latter might prove a bit tricky, being part of the so-called “Hurricane Belt”, there is certainly plenty of sun and heavily overcast days are usually limited.
Perhaps the best argument is that fossil fuels must be imported by sea, making the island’s supply vulnerable to storms and other shipping problems. With so much money still available in the Recovery, Reconstruction and Resilience Trust Fund sponsored by the Netherlands as well as planned investments to accompany post-pandemic restructuring measures, paying more attention to this matter seems like a no-brainer.
