How Transfer Stations Are Changing Behavior

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NASSAU, BAHAMAS – With illegal dumping still rampant, Environment Minister Zane Lightbourne says transfer stations are a solution to the problem, allowing persons to dump legally.

Zane Lightbourne – Minister, Environment & Natural Resources

“We know that traffic is an issue, and even though the island is small, it’s difficult for persons who live out east to get to Harold Road, which is the one dumpsite or landfill area that we have.”

He also says that difficulty often leads to a different problem.

Zane Lightbourne – Minister, Environment & Natural Resources

“We find that even when persons clean yards for people, they stop on the side of the road, sometimes they find a vacant property, and they just dump the items so that they can make multiple trips, and those items never make it to the landfill.”

To break that cycle, Lightbourne says the idea of transfer stations was born in Yamacraw in 2023, not as a policy paper, but as a response to what he was seeing on the ground.

Zane Lightbourne – Minister, Environment & Natural Resources

“When I became the member of Parliament, I noticed that in my constituency of Yamacraw, there were a lot of vacant properties, and every time you clean it up, they dump things right back there.”

After temporary bins failed, Lightbourne says he pushed for a permanent solution.

Zane Lightbourne – Minister, Environment & Natural Resources

“So we had some bins permanently placed, and when I got to environment, I said look, this is working good. I would like to have this as a transfer station.”

The results he says were immediate.

Zane Lightbourne – Minister, Environment & Natural Resources

“We found that, that was such a success, less dumping in the bushes, and people were coming to dump in the transfer station.”

Today, transfer stations operate in Yamacraw, Golden Isles, and South Beach, with more planned.

Lightbourne says the system works by making dumping legal, local, and managed.

Zane Lightbourne – Minister, Environment & Natural Resources

“They’re about four or five bins lined up, and once they’re full, trucks move them back and forth to the landfill. And that saves time, and saves people, especially from having to make a few trips.”

The minister acknowledges some residents have raised concerns about transfer stations being located near homes, but he says the alternative is worse.

Zane Lightbourne – Minister, Environment & Natural Resources

“Some people don’t like them because they may be near residential areas sometimes, but it beats taking those items and dumping them in the bush.”

To prevent misuse, Lightbourne says he’s had to add security, and increase hauling.

He says his ministry is now looking at purchasing its own roll-off trucks to cut costs and sustain the program.