Beautiful Virgin Islands

Sunday, Jul 20, 2025

Laundromat run-off in VG raises pollution concerns

The alleged heavy odour of detergent in the water in an area of Valley in Virgin Gorda has resulted in residents voicing concerns about the issue to their Ninth District Representative, and Minister for Natural Resources, Labour and Immigration, Honourable Vincent O. Wheatley, who held his first town hall meeting on January 23, 2020 to report to his constituents about accomplishments and challenges of 2019 and projections for 2020.

The well attended meeting was held at the Catholic Community Centre in Valley, Virgin Gorda and saw support from Acting Premier and Minister for Health and Social Development, Honourable Carvin Malone (AL), Minister for Transportation, Works and Utilities, Honourable Kye M. Rymer (R5), Junior Minister for Trade and Economic Development Honourable Shereen D. Flax-Charles (AL) and Deputy Speaker Honourable Neville A. Smith (AL).


Water testing to be done

Hon Wheatley assured residents he will move with urgency to have the requisite department deploy a team to conduct water sampling in an effort to address possible serious pollution caused by run-off from a laundromat in a section of the Valley.

He explained, “We have been carrying out increased water testing. We don’t normally test water unless it’s a swimming area like long Bay, Cane Garden Bay, Brewers Bay and around Willy T. I will have a team over here next week to test the water to see exactly what is there. We are not going to speculate, we will test the water to see what is there before we take action.”


‘We have destroyed the environment for personal gains’- Gregory George

Making it emphatically clear that he was not throwing blame on anyone or attempting to create conflict in anyway, Mr Gregory George expressed deep concern about the high smell of detergent in the water in the area between Coco Maya and Fischer’s Cove.

“We all know that the reef between Coco Maya and Fischer’s Cove is just about there. I went to Kayak from the area of the old Post Office back around to Trump Bay and when I got into the water I had to look around because I was smelling detergent, it was that strong.”


Further stressing his concern about this issue, Mr George said more care must be given to the environment.

“We have destroyed and continue to destroy our natural environments for personal gains, we have to find solutions, not to shut our businesses down, but how can we find solutions to fix those things, because at the end of the day once we lose the environment all of us are going to be affected.”

He pleaded, “I am saying, how best can we check that pipe, re-route it. With the advancement of technologies today we can put solutions scrubbers on a laundromat and make sure all the water is scrubbed and cleaned and can be reused. It just takes us time to sit down and get a think tank together on how we can approach these things.”


Wasteful dumping of concrete

Mr George also spoke about what he termed the wasteful dumping of excess concrete by companies. I think we are wasting stuff, something that can probably be used.”

The resident suggested and the District Representative, Hon Wheatley, welcomed the idea of having a discussion with those concerned to have left over cement used to fill potholes or placed on broken drive-ways of private properties.

Residents also complained about raw sewage on the streets.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Defends Attorney General Pam Bondi Amid Epstein Memo Backlash
Renault Shares Drop as CEO Luca de Meo Announces Departure Amid Reports of Move to Kering
Senior Aides for King Charles and Prince Harry Hold Secret Peace Summit
Anti‑Semitism ‘Normalised’ in Middle‑Class Britain, Says Commission Co‑Chair
King Charles Meets David Beckham at Chelsea Flower Show
If the Department is Really About Justice: Ghislaine Maxwell Should Be Freed Now
NYC Candidate Zohran Mamdani’s ‘Antifada’ Remarks Spark National Debate on Political Language and Economic Policy
President Trump Visits Flood-Ravaged Texas, Praises Community Strength and First Responders
×