Beautiful Virgin Islands

Sunday, Jul 06, 2025

How one island territory is getting creative with upcycling and reuse

The British Virgin Islands experienced recycling challenges long before commodity market shifts. Now, the failure of a critical incinerator has prompted a whole new materials management plan.

A new waste management system coming to the British Virgin Islands (BVI) offers a different vision from traditional recycling programs. Rather than exporting everything, local residents are looking for ways to turn glass into art, Styrofoam into beanbag chairs, plastic into fence boards and cardboard into compost.

This was initiated in part by a gas tank explosion in the island of Tortola's incinerator last November. The resulting fire, which took the territory's main disposal infrastructure offline, was the latest of multiple waste-related fires the Caribbean territory of 30,000 had seen in recent months. Hurricane Irma also left behind piles of flammable debris after it ravaged the islands in 2017.

Now, the broken incinerator had further exacerbated a problem that has long plagued the BVI and island nations across the world: how to handle their waste.

Following these issues, the BVI government signed a memorandum of understanding with nonprofit Green VI to implement a territory-wide recycling system in April. The new program plans to keep the majority of the waste on the island by partnering with local businesses and entrepreneurs that "upcycle" waste as raw material input.

"Islands are quite unique in terms of waste management because really we're too far away from markets to make recycling a feasible thing," said Green VI President Charlotte McDevitt.


Isolated markets

A 2016 publication from the Inter-American Development Bank that looked at solid waste management in nine Caribbean countries found they "face similar challenges in regard to solid waste management such as increasing solid waste generation, changes in waste characterization, lack of adequate disposal sites and low collection rates." While this didn't include the BVI, many of the same factors apply.

When the incinerator was working, it processed about 100 to 120 tons of waste per day, according to Neville Allen, acting assistant manager for the BVI's Department of Waste Management. Allen is hoping to divert about 40% of that by taking plastic, glass and aluminum out of the waste stream.

"The main thing is to get these items out of the waste stream. So anyone that can process them, we'll gladly give them these items to recycle," he said.

McDevitt is more optimistic, aiming for 50% within the first year and 70% by year three. She estimates it will cost around $12 million over five years to build and operate small-scale material recovery facilities on each of the BVI's four major islands. The proposed facilities will sort and process materials for upcycling, composting or exporting. ​

For materials such as aluminum and iron, the price per ton is often high enough to cover the costs of compaction and freight, making it more economical to ship off island. For other materials that don't garner high enough prices, the BVI is one of many islands turning to local business owners and entrepreneurs to find innovative ways of using waste as a resource.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
Music Banned by Henry VIII to Be Performed After 500 Years
Steve Coogan Says Working Class Is Being ‘Ethnically Cleansed’
Home Office Admits Uncertainty Over Visa Overstayer Numbers
JD Vance Questions Mandelson Over Reform Party’s Rising Popularity
Macron to Receive Windsor Carriage Ride in Royal Gesture
Labour Accused of ‘Hammering’ Scots During First Year in Power
BBC Head of Music Stood Down Amid Bob Vylan Controversy
Corbyn Eyes Hard-Left Challenge to Starmer’s Leadership
London Tube Trains Suspended After Major Fire Erupts Nearby
Richard Kemp: I Felt Safer in Israel Under Attack Than in the UK
Cyclist Says Police Cited Human Rights Act for Riding No-Handed
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Musk Battles to Protect Tesla Amid Trump Policy Threats
Air France-KLM Acquires Majority Stake in Scandinavian Airlines
UK Educators Sound Alarm on Declining Child Literacy
Shein Fined €40 Million in France Over Misleading Discounts
Brazil’s Lula Visits Kirchner During Argentina House Arrest
Trump Scores Legislative Win as House Passes Tax Reform Bill
Keir Starmer Faces Criticism After Rocky First Year in Power
DJI Launches Heavy-Duty Coaxial Quadcopter with 80 kg Lift Capacity
U.S. Senate Approves Major Legislation Dubbed the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Largest Healthcare Fraud Takedown in U.S. History Announced by DOJ
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Political Dispute Escalates Between Trump and Musk
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
US Senate Votes to Remove AI Regulation Moratorium from Domestic Policy Bill
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
Jury Deliberations in Diddy Trial Yield Partial Verdict in Serious Criminal Charges
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
King Charles Plans Significant Role for Prince Harry in Coronation
Two Chinese Nationals Arrested for Espionage Activities Against U.S. Navy
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Extreme Heat Wave Sweeps Across Europe, Hitting Record Temperatures
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
×