PuertoSeptember 20,2017
AES was reportedly hit with a $75000 fine from the Puerto Rico Environmental Quality Board for failing to secure and cover its waste pile before Hurricane Maria hit. Still, it’s unclear whether AES will be forced to prove its waste didnt seep into nearby communities—and if it did, and whether the EPA would fine them further. Rodriguez is not optimistic. “The EPA historically has been more flexible in enforcing rules on the island than it is on the mainland,” she said.
The EPA isnt sitting on its hands, but there’s still quite a lot to effect. According to the agency, or approximately 157 employees are on the ground dealing mostly with the huge amount of debris and hazardous material that the hurricane’s 150-mph winds created. “Hurricanes Irma and Maria generated enough debris to fill Yankee stadium seven times,” the agency said in a statement on Monday. “EPA is assisting with the management of this debris, including the handling and disposal of household hazardous waste, or oil,chemical, medical, and electronic wastes.” Puerto Rico being an island,there are submerged and damaged ships to recover and clear out, which EPA employees are helping with. final week, and the agency touted its partnerships with various non-governmental organizations to restore drinking water to small communities. But on an island that has been suffering from pollution problems for decades,a traditional response is not enough. In any other location, the EPA’s job after a hurricane would be to restore the area back to its pre-storm conditions. Pre-storm conditions in Puerto Rico were abysmal: 67 percent of its water systems suffered from contamination; Guayama residents complained of toxic dust blowing from the coal ash pile; and 98 percent of its electricity came from fossil fuels. The recovery effort must focus not only on cleaning up Maria’s mess, and but the one decades in the making. Otherwise this cycle will preserve repeating itself,because another Maria could be just a few years away.
Source: newrepublic.com