Waste Management proposes $360 annual household garbage fee as landfills near capacity; authority cites illegal oil dumping and one-million tire backlog
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Summary
Interim director Daryl Griffith told senators the authority is underfunded, that Bovoni landfill needs expansion and remediation, that illegal cooking and motor oil dumping is frequent, and that an annual $360 per-household garbage collection fee will be proposed to the Public Service Commission.
The Virgin Islands Waste Management Authority told the Senate committee it is proposing a territory-wide residential garbage collection fee of $360 per household per year, while warning that the territory's landfills are approaching capacity and face recurring illegal dumping problems including large volumes of used cooking oil and more than one million tires.
Interim Executive Director Daryl Griffith said on Feb. 19 the authority will present a formal fee filing to the Public Service Commission (PSC) in March and described the $360 figure as a straight-line calculation based on the authority's total solid-waste operating cost and the number of households. Griffith said the total cost of solid-waste services (collection, bin sites, convenience centers, public agencies, schools and landfill operations) is roughly $19.6 million per year and that the proposed fee would yield about $19 million if every household were assessed; after property-tax collection shortfalls the authority projects roughly $15 million in new revenue.
Landfill capacity and hazardous materials Griffith said Bovoni landfill is near capacity and the authority is seeking additional property to expand it. He told the committee that unauthorized dumping of used cooking oil and motor oil is widespread and creates hazardous conditions at bin sites and landfills. The authority has executed a contract (12/30/2024) to remove oil and had a contractor begin removals in February; it additionally ordered seven 500-gallon containers for Bovoni for temporary storage. The authority said most illegally dumped oil arrives at Rapun Hill, Cancreng Site and Solberg site on St. Thomas but all sites see oil dumping.
Tires and funding The authority estimated approximately 400,000 used tires at each of the two main landfills (Anguilla and Bovoni) and stated a territory total exceeding 1,000,000 tires that must be disposed of, reduced or repurposed. Griffith urged that fees collected from Act 83-70 (IRB tire fee and excise) be sent directly to waste management; he said IRB has collected about $2 million but the funds were transmitted to Finance, not to the authority.
Convenience centers, enforcement and tipping fees The authority said it has received notices to proceed or pending approvals for multiple convenience centers (five of seven planned centers with CDBG-DR funding on St. Croix and Red Hook moving through environmental review). Griffith said conversion of certain bin sites to convenience centers will allow better sorting and reduce roadside dumping. The authority also reported tip-fee revenue of $1.2 million in 2022, $2.2 million in 2023 and $2.7 million in 2024 with an estimate of $3.5 million for 2025.
Enforcement and citations Senior enforcement director Anderson Napoleon told the committee the enforcement division issued 350 citations in 2024 and was already issuing citations in 2025; he said some illegal disposal occurs at businesses and that enforcement has issued citations to businesses and individuals. Senators raised disparities between statutory fine levels (Title 19 ' 15-63: illegal dumping fine language referencing $1,000 and higher) and what courts reduce sentences to; senators asked for coordination with the Judiciary to support enforcement.
Why it matters The authority said it cannot sustain current services on existing revenues and that fee changes are necessary to avoid service collapse, to pay contractors and to remediate hazardous conditions at landfills. Griffith asked the legislature's help to secure earmarked funds (including CDBG-DR match) and to consider sending IRB tire fees directly to the authority so that tire disposal and remediation can begin in earnest.
Selected quote "The Virgin Islands is the only jurisdiction that does not charge for garbage collection; we no longer can afford not to do so," Griffith told the committee.
Next steps Griffith said the authority will file the garbage-fee request with the PSC in March and asked senators for help directing existing dedicated fee streams (tire fees, sewer fees) to the authority to address immediate needs and to fund maintenance and remediation work.
Ending note Senators asked the authority to provide a breakdown of how fees would be charged to multifamily units and non-property owners, to propose low-income exemptions or phased approaches, and to supply a list of convenience-center projects, timelines and contracts for legislative review.
