The St. Croix Transfer Station will close early Friday to calibrate its scales for new tipping fees, according to the V.I. Waste Management Authority. The station will close at 12:30 p.m.
The authority is currently finalizing plans for the implementation of the new fees. Another series of meetings will be held to provide updates on the projected implementation date, the fee structure, policies and procedures.
New fees had been schedule to start Oct. 1, but senators voted in session Thursday to mandate the VIWMA delay the fees until Jan. 1, increasing the territory’s Fiscal Year 2017 deficit of $110 million by another $850,000 to subsidize the lost revenue to the VIWMA. (See: Senate Approves 2017 Budget Bills in Related Links below) That delay and new expenditure is now before Gov. Kenneth Mapp for signature or veto.
The fees will be calculated by weight for any waste material brought in to the St. Croix Transfer Station, the Susannaberg Transfer Station on St. John or the Bovoni landfill on St. Thomas. The tipping fee per ton ranges from $31.28 to $65.26 depending upon the type of material being disposed.
According to VIWMA, it costs about $10.2 million per year for the authority to manage 200,000 tons of solid waste. The tipping fees will generate approximately $6.9 million, with services to residents expected to cover the balance.
Regular operating hours will resume Monday at 6 a.m.
