July 26, 2001 – Water and Power Authority executive director Joseph Thomas will meet this week with officials of a company proposing to build two solid waste gasification plants in the territory, one on St. Thomas and one on St. Croix.
The meeting with representatives of Caribe Waste Technologies is to iron out a proposal for WAPA to purchase power, he said.
Gasification technology involves heating garbage to the point where it releases combustible gas which can be used for electric energy production. It is thus a means both of disposing of solid waste and of producing fuel that in turn can be used to generate electricity.
The Caribe Waste plant on St. Croix is to produce 8 megawatts of electricity a day, and the one on St. Thomas, 2 megawatts, according to Thomas, who has been meeting with CWT representatives.
In theory, he said, WAPA has agreed to purchase electricity from the waste plants, but a pivotal issue has been the "avoided cost" figure. That is the amount of money the utility would save by not producing the water and electricity itself.
In initial discussions, Thomas said, the two parties could not agree on a figure, so a consultant, Stone and Webster, was brought in and arrived at a figure acceptable to both parties — 6.9 cents per kilowatt hour. Thomas said purchasing power from CTW for the same amount of money that it would cost for WAPA to produce the power itself would be "the authority's civic responsibility to the community" in helping solve the territory's solid waste problems.
Thomas told WAPA board members at a meeting Tuesday that he will meet with CWT officers to discuss the 6.9-cent figure and methods and scheduling for receipt of electricity. He said he would present a complete package to the board at its next meeting.
Gov. Charles W. Turnbull had written to the board chair, Carol Burke, asking WAPA's assistance in solving the over-capacity problems at the Bovoni landfill on St. Thomas and the Anguilla landfill on St. Croix.
Adding to the impending crisis on St. Croix, the Federal Aviation Administration has threatened to shut down the Henry E. Rohlsen Airport if the Anguilla landfill isn't closed by 2002. Smoke from the landfill and the birds it attracts pose dangers to aviation, the FAA contends. The Environmental Protection Agency has imposed many fines on the territory because neither landfill complies with environmental laws.
Repeated calls to Sonya Nelthropp, the Public Works Department's solid waste specialist, for further information on Caribe Waste plans were not returned. The Source could not learn the status of contract negotiations between CWT and the V.I. government.

July 28, 2001 — A memorial service for Mark Marin will be held at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday in the courtyard of Antilles School, where he served for 22 years as headmaster. Burial at sea will follow.
Viewing will be from 9:30 a.m.
In lieu of flowers, his wife, Jackie, has asked that donations be made to the Mark Marin Scholarship Fund at Antilles School. They may be sent to the school at 7280 Frenchman's Bay 16-1, St. Thomas VI 00802.

The Reichhold Center for the Arts presents "School’s Out"
The Reichhold Center for the Arts presents "School’s Out," a play written by Trevor Rhone of Jamaica and directed by Alvin Hippolyte. It is a humorous play that parallels the educational system in the Caribbean. Curtain opens at 8 p.m. Friday, Aug. 3 to 6, Aug. 10 – 13 and Aug.17 – 20 in the Little Theatre. It is intended for mature audiences. Tickets are on sale at the Reichhold Center Box Office at 693-1559.
Mango Melee on St. Thomas
UVI’s Cooperative Extension Service presents Mango Melee on Saturday, July 28 at the Tutu Park Mall from 12 noon to 6 p.m. There will be court venders, entertainment, a workshop on plant propagation and a variety of mango dishes including jams, entrees and drinks. Admission is free. For more information please call 693-1080.
"Wellhead Protection Area Management Standards" workshop
The University of the Virgin Islands’ Water Resources Research Institute will have a seminar entitled "Wellhead Protection Area Management Standards" from 9 to 11 a.m. Tuesday, Aug. 7. The seminar will be tele-conferenced between room T-101 of the Teacher Education Building on the St. Thomas Campus and room 713 of the Evans Center on the St. Croix Campus. For more information please call extension 693-1062 or 693-1063.
"Principles of Bonding/Requirements for Construction Financing and Insurance"seminar
The University of the Virgin Islands Small Business Development Center and Hillside Secretarial Services will hold a "Principles of Bonding/Requirements for Construction Financing and Insuranc" seminar from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 9 in the UVI-SBDC Training Facility, Nisky Center. UVI Students, faculty and staff are admitted free, general admission is $20. Discounts of $5 are given to those who pre-register. To pre-register and for more information call the UVI-Small Business Development Center at 776-3206.
For more on the University of the Virgin Islands, visit the website atwww.uvi.edu.

The Division of Fish and Wildlife will host a public meeting for commercial fishermen at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, July 31, at the Curriculum Center on St. Croix.
The agenda will focus on a moratorium to discuss the issuing of new Commercial Fishing Permits. All commercial fishermen are urged to attend.
For additional information call the Division of Fish and Wildlife at 772-1955.

The Division of Fish and Wildlife will host a public meeting for commercial fishermen at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, July 31, at the Curriculum Center on St. Croix.
The agenda will focus on a moratorium to discuss the issuing of new Commercial Fishing Permits. All commercial fishermen are urged to attend.
For additional information contact the Division of Fish and Wildlife at 772-1955.

To the Source:
It is being said that our public servants are underpaid and therefore demoralized. Does that necessarily mean that if the public servants were to be paid all the money they ask for, the public would receive better service? I am sure that many who joined the government service did so not for the high pay it affords but rather for the security it offers and other perks. Now these same people want to have it all, high pay, best fringe benefits and all the other perks.
Can anyone identify a government that can afford to satisfy all the wants of its public service employees? I believe there are other considerations to be taken into account in resolving the morale problem of our public service employees.
We need to investigate, through our representatives in the Legislature, and in particular on the Government Operations Committee, the factors that contribute to the low morale in government service. I would like to enumerate some that I experienced as a public servant (now retired) and from my conversations with other public servants.
To begin, I would point out poor leadership. The executives appointed by the chief executive are for the most part not really competent for the assignments but are given them based on political and family connections. Some supervisors who are incompetent are inclined to cover up their incompetence by employing all kinds of unorthodox schemes. The problem is that of top management and middle management.
Coupled with incompetence is negligence on the part of these management personnel, their lack of punctuality, their fraternization with a particular group of subordinates in opposition to others, their partiality in the application of the rules of employment, their failure to provide adequate leadership and needed supplies to subordinates, etc.
We need to find out why there is no regular, ongoing training on all levels of government service. We need to find out why there is such widespread abuse of privilege by public servants: extended lunch periods, abuse of sick time, regular absence from post, suspension of service more than 15 minutes before close of business day, etc. Would increases in pay improve the courtesy and quality of service to the public?
The unions have effectively rendered ineffective the evaluation tool of the personnel merit system, and that needs to be addressed by the Legislature. Maybe we need to adopt what I understand is practiced by the federal government, that salaries are not negotiated but are established by the merit system, which is competitive and graded according to law.
We need to evaluate our emergency services with the purpose of upgrading them to meet the needs of this community. One area that needs immediate attention is the response time, which is critical in emergency situations. Are the services provided with adequately trained personnel, equipment and good management?
There is no reason to develop the greatest of plans if they will not be implemented. We need to ensure that the plans of action that are developed and approved are put into use and monitored for faithful compliance. I know, you are saying that takes discipline which is lacking. Granted that is true, we can still strive to improve by developing self-discipline.
I believe that the Police Department, our premier emergency responder, needs restructuring, maybe by the reinstitution of the platoon system and the implementation of a real career incentive program, as was recommended by the International Association of Chiefs of Police years ago. As we can observe, there are very few officers, if any, on the beat, much less supervisors. It is my view that since the supervisors have made themselves expendable, we should reduce their numbers and increase the seniority ranking of the officers.
At present the officers are on their own when on patrol, anyway. There is very little roll call, directed patrols and post inspection by supervisors. I am sure if the higher echelons were to ask commanders their frequency of inspection, the truthful answers would be appalling. There is no inspector general in the Police Department — a very useful office for a paramilitary organization as the department purports to be.
Is there any real oversight by the Legislature of government agencies besides sporadic and reactionary public performances by some committee chairs? In a democratic society, the people get the quality of government they deserve, since they elect their own representatives. If we think we deserve better, let us take control and literally pull these representatives aside and demand better performance, the democratic way. Let us exercise people power that is granted to us by the U.S. Constitution and the V.I. Organic Act.
J.J. Estemac
St. Thomas
We welcome and encourage readers to keep the dialogue going by responding to Source commentary. Letters should be e-mailed with name and place of residence to source@viaccess.net.

The Government Employees' Retirement System invites members who will be retiring in the next year or two to participate in a Count Down to Retirement Workshop at 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug 1, in the GERS Conference Room, 3rd floor GERS Building, St. Thomas.
Take advantage of the opportunity to learn about your benefits.
For additional information or to pre-register, call 776-7703 ext 4202 or 4203. Seating is limited so register early. Pre-registration deadline is Monday, July 30.

The Government Employees' Retirement System invites members who will be retiring in the next year or two to participate in a Count Down to Retirement Workshop at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 8, at the GERS Conference Room, 3005 Orange Grove, St. Croix.
Take advantage of the opportunity to learn about your benefits.
For additional information or to pre-register, call Mrs. Ann Forbes-Samuel at 773-5480. Seating is limited so register early. Pre-registration deadline is Friday, Aug. 3.

The Government Employees' Retirement System invites members who will be retiring in the next year or two to participate in a Count Down to Retirememt Workshop at 9 a.m on Wednesday, Aug. 8, at the GERS Conference Room 3005 Orange Grove, St. Croix.
Take advantage of the opportunity to learn about your benefits.
For additional information or to pre-register, call Mrs. Ann Forbes-Samuel at 773-5480. Seating is limited so register early. Pre-registration deadline is Friday, Aug. 3.

The Government Employee's Retirement System invites members who will be retiring in the next year or two, to participate in a Count Down to Retirement Workshop at 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 1, in the GERS Conference Room, 3rd floor GERS Building.
Take advantage of the opportunity to learn about your benefits.
For additional information or to pre-register, call 776-7703 ext 4202 or 4203. Seating is limited so register early. Pre-registration deadline is Monday, July 30.