Message-ID: <199601171709.MAA152217@atlanta.american.edu> Date: Wed, 17 Jan 1996 12:09:31 EST From: Cindy Taft <mailto:CTAFT@NERVM.NERDC.UFL.EDU> Subject: HELP--ORGANIC WASTE DISP. IN TROPICS To: Multiple recipients of list DEVEL-L <mailto:DEVEL-L@AMERICAN.EDU>
REQUEST FOR INFO/ASSISTANCE SOLID (ORGANIC) WASTE DISPOSAL IN HUMID TROPICSI work for a small non-profit that does wildlife conservation work in Central America and the Caribbean. One small, isolated village where we work on the northern Caribbean coast of Costa Rica has undergone considerable tourism development in the last decade. The village has grown and the number of hotels in the area has also increased. More non-biodegradable items are making their way into the area but means of collecting, separating and transporting plastic, glass and aluminum items to recycling centers are being organized. The problem of what to do with the organic or "kitchen" wastes from both households and hotels remains.
Without taking into consideration any environmental impacts, one consulting firm has proposed a small above-ground landfill project. The design resembles a huge compost heap with a system of tubing in the base to drain the liquid products of decomposition to a septic tank system. Deposits to the landfill would be covered with sand and protected with a tied-down plastic cover or tarp. The designer says the landfill would occupy an area of at least 50 by 70 meters and accomodate the area's wastes for 20 years.
We are not convinced that this project is appropriate for the area. It is currently on hold because the laws protecting Costa Rica's Maritime Zone (to 200 meters above the mean high tide mark) do not permit land use alterations in the Maritime Zone without the preparation of a Regulatory Plan and the plan done for this region specifically prohibits this kind of project. Nevertheless, we must find a means of dealing with the problem.
Can anyone provide us with information/references/contacts on how to cope with kitchen wastes in a very humid tropical system? The area in question is located on coastal strand--a 22-mile long barrier island or bar separated from the mainland by estuarine lagoons and canals. The adjacent mainland is mostly palm swamp (flooded year-round) and lowland rain forest (prone to frequent flooding). Annual rainfall is over 6,000 mm and occasionally exceeds 8,000 mm. The water table is within a meter of the surface. On the bar, the soils are sandy. The bar is particularly narrow in the vicinity of the village and susceptible to erosion from both the ocean side and the lagoon side, especially where the vegetation has been removed.
Some years back, when there were fewer of us in the area, a few pigs handled the problem nicely. But the pigs seem to have disappeared with the tourism boom. Our experiments with small- scale composting were smelly, attracted rats and eventually snakes.
If you can provide ideas on potential solutions to our problem, please contact Cindy Taft as follows: TEL(day): (352) 373-6441; FAX: (352) 375-2449 or email mailto:<CTAFT@nervm.nerdc.ufl.edu>.
With many thanks in advance.