TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums St. Maarten - St. Martin Great Bay pollution solution

I just wounder what this will do to the corals and ecosystem if they pump it one mile out. Now when they do it is somewhat diluted by the time it is out there.
https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/52946-port-says-it-can-help-pump-water-in-ocean

Gee, Scubaman, so are you saying that it's better for them to continue to pump this stuff into Great Bay directly, where it could sicken locals and tourists alike?

No, I'm not advocating that. I was just wondering it they thought about the impact it would have on sea life if a direct undiluted contact is made. That is what I stated when I posted the article.

Other than treating the water before it is pumped, which I doubt would ever happen, this is still much better than dumping it in Great Bay, as it is being placed much further out to sea and not within such an enclosed area.

I'd like to see what the Nature Foundation in St Maarten has to say about this proposal and what they feel the impact will be on the ecosystem.

I sympathize with you Scubaman. As a fellow diver. But here in California, only 30 years ago, all of our LA waste was pumped out a mile. 9 million people. Dilution was the theory. Of course nowadays we have treatment plants. Not an excuse, but attitudes are slow to change. Especially with money in the equation. BTW, have you dived Saba?

Again--what else do you propose that they do with the stuff??????????? In a perfect world, yes, it would be treated before being released, but that's not going to happen.

Yes I have nine dives in Saba. Great dive sites and very clear waters. You might be interested in this article I saw about 10 new dive sites that bouys were put in the Man O War nature reserve off St Maarten. Can't wait to dive these next May.
http://www.todaysxm.com/toast-on-new-dive-site-pelikaan/

I think scubaman is rising some valid points.

Also Jadira Veen of SXM Pride stated to me that she would be in favor of this "only if there is a mechanism in place to block land based litter from entering the pipe that will flow the water into the ocean. We all know by now that litter like cups, bottles and plastic items are washed down into our ponds. When the flood gates open that litter ends up at sea."

this has to be thought out carefully. It's a bad system now and a solution that does not take these safeguards into consideration only makes a bad situation worse.

I guess I'm missing something, as I don't understand how this could make it worse.. All that stuff that she's talking about goes into the sea now..

Carol, If they don't pump out far enough, it will all come right back into the bay. It doesn't just mysteriously disappear. It has to go somewhere. Treated waste is processed in the plant on the road bu Sunny Foods and then is pumped into the pond that empties out into the bay by Sonesta Great Bay. When it rains hard, the waste and water is pumped directly into the pond and goes out untreated. It's the same everywhere. In Nassau County on Long Island, The built outfall pipes for the treated sewage and only put the pipe out about 1/2 mile if that. Once they started pumping, it all comes back onto the beach and the water is brown and sludgie. There is really no solution. There are just too many people making too much waste! We are 2 people and I can't believe how we have a big kitchen trash bag full just about every other day. It never ends!

I know it just doesn't disappear, but I still don't understand how it could be WORSE than what is happening now...

I think the takeway is - if money is going to be spent, make sure it's better than the current situation vs "digging a hole" to bury the current problem

May not be worse, but will it be better?

J&B

Yes, I agree that should be the criteria, will it be better, but I can't see how it WOULDN'T be better, to dump it much further out in the ocean, versus having it right on the shoreline where people are swimming, walking, riding jetskis, etc..

This topic raised a question for me---anyone know what the cruise ships do with their waste?

They dump it in the ocean. It's supposedly treated first, but the technology that they use is very old, and probably not particularly effective.

Newer cruise ships have treatment facilities, but currently older ships do not. That's 40% of ships, but they are mostly smaller than the latest ones being built.

Thanks for the info. So now it's bad enough ships dump but salt pond will also dump. I'm not an expert but dumping MUST bother the ecosystem.

How far is Saba from SXM? If a pipe goes out a mile wouldn't that possibly be closer to Saba which has the best diving? That will probably be spoiled.

A mile isn't even close to Saba. It's just out of the bay.

Saba is 28 miles away. They have their own waste problems just like everyone else. The ships don't dump when in port. Only when they are far out a sea. There are distances required for different types of trash and waste.