Nassau, Bahamas - On February 21st Bahamas Waste Ltd. officially
opened its $1,000,000 biodiesel facility, an investment that will allow
for the manufacturing of up to one million gallons of waste cooking oil
into biodiesel each year. Waste cooking oil is collected from
restaurants in Nassau such as McDonald’s, Burger King, KFC, and Wendy’s
is processed and converted on site and used to fuel Bahamas Waste trucks
and other stationary equipment. Currently four trucks are using a
50:50 blend of biodiesel to petroleum diesel; the company hopes to
eventually run the entire fleet of 50 vehicles off of 100% biodiesel as
production increases.
The development of this facility has been a long-term
project, with partners in The Bahamas and United States assisting with
planning and implementation. Cape Systems, Ltd., a for-profit
subsidiary of the Cape Eleuthera Island School, consulted on the project
over the past five years. The planning and construction of the
facility was done in conjunction with Wisconsin Biofuels, LLC. While
the initial production of biodiesel was delayed until December 2010 due
to lower quality cooking oil, the plant is now set to produce over 1,000
gallons per day when running at full capacity.
“Our latest initiative represents a bold and definite
step by Bahamas Waste to move us toward a greater use of renewable
energy resources, significantly reducing the amount of waste oil that
finds its way back into the environment and reduce the amount of carbon
dioxide release into the environment,” said Francisco De Cardenas,
Managing Director of Bahamas Waste.
Several distinguished guests attended the ribbon
cutting ceremony including The Hon. Earl Deveaux, Minister of
Environment and The Hon. Phenton Neymour, Minister of State for the
Environment from the government of The Bahamas. Chris Maxey, director
of the Cape Eleuthera Foundation and head of The Island School also
attended with members of the Cape Systems team that consulted on the
project: Graham Siener, Geoff Walton, and Jack Kenworthy. Chris Maxey,
Bahamas Environmental Steward Scholar (BESS) Garneisha Pinder, and
current Deep Creek Middle School (DCMS) student Moesha Leary accepted a
check for $0.25, in recognition of Bahamas Waste’s agreement to donate a
quarter from every gallon of biodiesel produced to fund scholarships
for BESS and DCMS students.
[The Island School and Cape Eleuthera Institute] have
demonstrated to the island of Eleuthera, what I hope Bahamas Waste
demonstrates to the rest of The Bahamas,” said Hon. Earle Deveaux,
Minister of Environment. “That there is money, opportunity in the
private sector taking hold of these initiatives that we have anchored in
legislation and in tax incentives; but it takes you to make it happen.”
About Bahamas Waste:
Bahamas
Waste is the largest private waste management company in The Bahamas,
with over 20 years of waste management success. Our experienced team
which handles more than a third of all waste produced in New Providence
each year, servicing more than 1,000 commercial and residential
customers, has not only made us the leader in private solid waste
collection but a leader in The Bahamas when it comes to environmental
stewardship. Our latest initiative represents a bold and definitive step
by to move toward the goal of using more renewable energy sources and
this new facility is evidence of our commitment to provide a cleaner and
more environmentally safe Bahamas.
