The Department of Waste Management is stepping up efforts to remove derelict vehicles and other scrap metals from across the Virgin Islands.

Acting Manager Mr. Neville Allen said after the 2017 hurricanes, many vehicles were destroyed causing a strain on the space for derelict vehicle storage in Sea Cow’s Bay.

Mr. Allen said the department through the Ministry of Health and Social Development is collaborating with KMJ General Maintenance to remove all derelict vehicles and other scrap metals from Pockwood Pond and shipped off the island. The hope is that the storage and processing of derelicts will be returned to Sea Cow's Bay.

Mr. Allen said the department had sent out a tender for interested parties to get the vehicles off the site and the island and KMJ General Maintenance reached out to the department.

“Right now they are on the site and they have a 5000-ton barge, they are loading and we are expecting to get all the items off the property and trying to return to how it was prior. I am happy to see these metals being processed and placed on the barge and the barge leaving to ship them off the island,” Mr. Allen stated.

The removal of the derelict vehicles from the Pockwood Pond site began on April 11, 2023. The loading of the scrap metals on the barge began on May 25. Since then, over two thousand tons of scrap metals were processed and loaded. Completion of the project is expected on June 2, while the vessel is expected to leave the Territory on June 3. The scrap metal will be exported to Columbia where it will be used for recycling purposes.

Meanwhile, Mr. Allen said the government will be looking to put more pressure on the owners of the vehicles to invest money to get the vehicles off the islands once their shelf life has been completed.

Mr. Allen said, “Many persons bring vehicles from Japan and so forth and it is very difficult to get parts when it starts giving problems and they would take these vehicles and put them on the side of the road and in public parking lots. It is a nightmare, a safety issue and it breaks down the beauty of our Territory.”

“If people bring in these vehicles, they need to be more responsible and do not put them on the side of the road for the government to deal with,” he stressed.

The Ministry of Health and Social Development through the Department of Waste Management is committed to transforming and implementing innovative ideas and strategies to manage waste in the Virgin Islands.