Garbage Crisis Overshadows Ambergris Caye Development Plans

As Ambergris Caye looks toward major development investments, an old problem continues to pile up: garbage. Illegal dumps are still blighting the island, raising fresh questions about whether basic services are keeping pace with its growing tourism industry. The Ambergris Northern Alliance sounded the alarm on Thursday, and while Mayor Wally Nunez has pledged to tackle the problem, UDP Caretaker for Belize Rural South Gabriel Zetina says the town council needs to fight for more resources before supporting multimillion-dollar projects. He argues that cleaning up the island should be just as much a priority as developing it.

 

Gabriel Zetina, UDP Caretaker, Belize Rural South

“There are many issues, garbage. We need a new garbage truck. There is only one working on this island. One garbage truck, so we are not investing where the money should be going and then we are wondering why our tourism product is not doing too well. And we are about to come into another year where we are dealing with sargassum, up to this point there has been concrete plan from area representative, Central Government, or much less or town council. I say all of this because we need to start that conversation and they need to start looking at where it is more important. I will say this too, the area they are planning to build this airport, and I had said this earlier this year, I said I don’t think it is the right area to build the airport, because if you take a trip you will see for yourself it is swamp land. You always hear about protecting our mangroves. The government’s plan, at least on paper, is trying to protect, but then in action what we are seeing tangible, they are destroying it.”

 

Zetina contends that the demand for additional schools is also a growing concern on the island that needs urgent attention.

 

Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.

 

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