SXMElections.com

DAWN BEACH--In a cheerful unveiling ceremony, Bodine Beentjes, accompanied by Minister of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure VROMI Claret Connor, celebrated the opening of two new recycling collection points on Saturday morning.

These will directly benefit residents of Dawn Beach Estates and Ocean View Terrace. The teen, a student at Learning Unlimited (LU), is also the initiator of the recycling point in Tamarind Hill opened earlier this year.

The collection points include separate containers for cardboard, plastic bottles, glass bottles and aluminium cans.

Instead of being added to the already-overloaded landfill – the hazard of which is the topic of urgent discussion in Government/Parliament – this recyclable trash will be taken to Point Blanche, processed, compressed and shipped abroad for recycling.

Project partner is St. Maarten Recycling, a company that processes recyclable materials from cruise ships as its main source of business. The cruise ships produce “a tonne of recyclable materials every day,” Beentjes said in a short speech.

“I have seen it with my own eyes. It’s unbelievable how much. … Thanks to that, smaller projects like us can be incorporated in the collection process.”

Continuing onwards with the project, Beentjes said she had worked with LU’s Green Team President Maxime Lee to bring the recycling project to school, enabling the process and educating the younger children on the benefits of recycling.

Several restaurants also have been approached to join and have shown interest. Beentjes said that along with classmates, she hoped to spread the project to other neighbourhoods, restaurants and hotels.

The project can be followed through community Facebook page “Separate and make a change.”

Before helping her to unveil the facilities, Minister Connor touched on the timely relevance of the project given the wide-reaching consequences of pollution, a global problem, and commended Beentjes for taking the initiative.