Virgin Islands Waste Management Authority
VIWMA & The Territory's Trash Crisis
A full record of how the Virgin Islands Waste Management Authority got here — decades of federal consent decrees, chronically underfunded operations, two landfills that should have closed years ago, and a new residential fee that could land on every WAPA bill in the territory.
What is VIWMA?
The Virgin Islands Waste Management Authority is a semi-autonomous agency of the territorial government responsible for solid waste collection, landfill operations, and wastewater management across St. Thomas, St. Croix, and St. John. It operates two active landfills — Bovoni on St. Thomas and Anguilla on St. Croix — and the Susannaberg Transfer Station on St. John, along with a network of convenience centers and bin sites across the territory.
VIWMA also manages the territory's wastewater treatment infrastructure, including treatment plants, pump stations, and sewer lines — the aging systems that serve tens of thousands of residential and commercial customers. Like WAPA, VIWMA's rates are set by the Public Services Commission, and its budget is dependent on a mix of tipping fees, PSC-approved user fees, and General Fund appropriations from the Legislature — a funding structure that has left the agency chronically short of what it needs to operate, let alone modernize.
By the Numbers.
VIWMA employees territory-wide — with 48 vacant positions as of FY2026 budget hearings
VIWMA's FY2026 budget request — including a proposed $9.8M residential solid waste fee
Amount VIWMA owes to vendors — revealed at the Senate Committee on Budget, Appropriations and Finance
Anguilla Landfill Opens on St. Croix
The Anguilla Landfill on St. Croix begins accepting waste — an operation that would continue for decades without the environmental protections federal law would later require. The site is unlined, meaning there is no barrier between the waste and the groundwater below. A significant clay layer exists beneath the site, providing some natural protection, but the absence of engineered containment would become a central issue in EPA enforcement actions decades later.
EPA Finds USVI Landfill Program "Unsatisfactory"
In 1993, the V.I. government applied to the EPA for approval of a solid waste program. The EPA advised the territory it needed regulations comparable to or stricter than federal guidelines in place by May 1996. It took seven years for the Department of Planning and Natural Resources to submit an acceptable plan. In April 2000, the EPA ordered the cleanup of the Bovoni Landfill on St. Thomas — one step short of unilateral federal action. A similar order followed for Anguilla. In May 2000, the EPA formally proposed rejecting the territory's entire landfill program, citing a history of violations at both Bovoni and Anguilla, insufficient funding, and inadequate staffing.
Anguilla Landfill Placed Under Federal Consent Decree
The Anguilla Landfill enters a formal federal consent decree — requiring the V.I. government to take specific remediation steps and work toward closure. A federal order also requires that the dump be relocated: it sits so close to the Henry E. Rohlsen Airport that birds feeding on the landfill pose a potentially fatal hazard to aircraft. Additional EPA citations follow in 2010 for problems at Bovoni involving the disposal of batteries, used oil, and leachate.
DOJ Files Complaint; Consent Decrees Signed for Both Landfills
The U.S. Department of Justice filed a complaint in federal court against the V.I. government, the Port Authority, and VIWMA in 2010 to force compliance with the Clean Air Act and federal landfill regulations. Growing out of that suit, consent decrees were signed in 2012 and 2013 for both Bovoni and Anguilla — requiring closure plans, groundwater monitoring, gas collection systems, and user fees to fund operations. Under the decrees, a federal judge began holding quarterly hearings with the V.I. government and DOJ to assess compliance.
DOJ Sues Again After Territory Misses Consent Decree Deadlines
The DOJ filed suit against the V.I. government in November 2015 after VIWMA missed multiple deadlines for turning in closure plans and status reports for both Bovoni and Anguilla. The federal government sought $2.5 million in penalties accumulated through October 2015. At a March 2016 hearing in U.S. District Court, federal legal counsel told the judge that the V.I. government had not prioritized the mandated closures — agreed to more than three years earlier. The Anguilla closure plan was approved, but EPA was still waiting on revisions to the Bovoni plan more than two years after it was first submitted.
Commercial Tipping Fees Implemented — Then Suspended After Hauler Dispute
After years of opposition, the Public Services Commission finally implemented commercial solid waste tipping fees in 2016 to help fund VIWMA operations. The fees were almost immediately suspended in 2017 after a dispute over how trash was measured — by weight at Anguilla versus by volume at Bovoni, after Bovoni's weigh-scale broke. Haulers stopped collecting garbage. The fee was put on hold. Then, in September 2017, Hurricanes Irma and Maria struck — triggering a massive emergency cleanup that sent enormous additional waste to both landfills, further compressing their already strained remaining capacity.
Hurricanes Irma and Maria Overwhelm Both Landfills
The twin hurricanes generated massive volumes of storm debris that went directly to Bovoni and Anguilla — both of which were already at or near capacity under the consent decrees. The emergency cleanup effort added years of waste volume in a matter of months. FEMA's disaster declarations (DR-4335 for Irma, DR-4340 for Maria) opened a federal funding pipeline that would later include CDBG-DR allocations specifically targeting landfill expansion and closure projects.
Tipping Fees Reinstated — Now Based on Volume
Commercial solid waste tipping fees were reintroduced, now uniformly measured by volume — cubic yards — at all three territory disposal facilities: Anguilla on St. Croix, Bovoni on St. Thomas, and the Susannaberg Transfer Station on St. John. The standardized measurement resolved the 2017 dispute. Fees have been incrementally increased since, with another commercial tipping fee increase taking effect January 1, 2026.
Bovoni Landfill Fire Burns as EPA Seeks New Approach
A fire at the Bovoni Landfill on St. Thomas draws renewed attention to the site's ongoing compliance problems. At the time of the fire, a joint status report filed by federal and local attorneys in U.S. District Court notes that both Bovoni and Anguilla "should have closed years ago" under EPA regulations. A CDBG-DR/Mitigation allocation of $146 million from VIHFA is identified as the first time since the consent decrees that sufficient funding may be available for the work required — including landfill expansion and closure activities.
Senate Briefed: VIWMA Chronically Underfunded, $35M General Fund Dependency
Testifying before the Legislature, VIWMA reports it received $35 million from the General Fund for FY2024 — yet still describes itself as chronically underfunded. The authority is working on a CDBG-DR Grant Tranche 3 application totaling $100 million, targeting the Bovoni Landfill Expansion Project, the Bovoni Landfill Closure Project, and the Anguilla Landfill Closure Project. The tipping fee program is credited with providing funds needed to bring landfills into compliance and settle existing liens.
Septage Waste Disposal Fee Takes Effect January 1, 2026
After years of delay, VIWMA implements a septage waste disposal fee of $75.58 per 1,000 gallons of wastewater — applicable to haulers with a required septage discharge permit. The fee applies to all septage received at VIWMA treatment plants from septic systems, portable toilets, and other privately owned wastewater systems. VIWMA had been legally authorized to collect the fee since 2017, attempted to implement it in August of that year, then suspended it. The PSC-approved fee is now in effect. A town hall for St. Thomas/St. John haulers was held December 10 at PSC offices in Barbel Plaza.
VIWMA Requests $53.6M for FY2026 — Reveals $19M Owed to Vendors
At a hearing before the Senate Committee on Budget, Appropriations and Finance, Interim Executive Director Darryl Griffith presents a $53.6 million FY2026 budget request that includes a proposed residential solid waste fee projected to generate up to $9.8 million annually. The hearing also reveals that VIWMA owes $19 million to vendors and that operational costs — garbage collection, landfill maintenance, and wastewater services — exceed $25 million annually. VIWMA employs approximately 470 people but has 48 vacant positions, with plans to fill only 20 by end of FY2026. In FY2025, VIWMA hired 12 new employees but lost 22, including four retirements.
VIWMA and Bovoni Residents Advance "Shared Vision" for Sustainable Waste Management
VIWMA announces a community engagement initiative with Bovoni-area residents — the neighborhood adjacent to the St. Thomas landfill — around a shared vision for sustainable waste management. A temporary closure and subsequent reopening of the Bovoni Landfill occurs in the same week, drawing attention to ongoing operational unpredictability at the site. Separately, the Anguilla Landfill on St. Croix reopens following a weather-related closure.
VIWMA Files for $19.95/Month Residential Fee — On Your WAPA Bill
VIWMA files a formal request with the Public Services Commission to implement a residential Solid Waste Management Fee of $19.95 per month per residential utility customer — collected as a line item on the customer's monthly WAPA utility bill. A separate Preserving Paradise Environmental Stewardship Fee of $3 per occupied hotel and short-term rental room night is also proposed. VIWMA states the proposal is based on a cost-of-service study projecting revenue and equipment needs through 2045, and that annual waste collection costs alone exceed $16 million. A public hearing before the PSC has been announced; date and location pending.
What is being proposed and who would pay
VIWMA has filed a formal application with the Public Services Commission requesting authority to collect a monthly Solid Waste Management Fee from every residential utility customer in the territory. The fee — $19.95 per month — would appear as a line item on each customer's WAPA electric bill. All residential WAPA customers would be subject to it regardless of whether they use VIWMA collection services directly.
A second fee is also proposed: a $3 per-night Preserving Paradise Environmental Stewardship Fee, assessed on every occupied hotel room and short-term rental unit in the territory. VIWMA says the combination of the residential fee, the hotel/STR fee, and continued General Fund contributions would cover the authority's full revenue requirements through 2045, based on a cost-of-service study the authority commissioned.
The Fee, Broken Down.
Proposed monthly fee per residential WAPA customer — collected as a line item on the utility bill
Proposed Preserving Paradise Environmental Stewardship Fee per occupied hotel or STR room night
The planning horizon of VIWMA's cost-of-service study that underlies the fee proposal
What VIWMA Says Happens If the Fee Is Not Approved
VIWMA states it cannot replace aging collection vehicles and equipment on schedule without dedicated revenue — increasing the risk of mechanical breakdowns, missed pickups, and extended gaps in garbage collection service across the territory.
Funding shortfalls could result in less frequent garbage pickup or suspended service in parts of the territory. VIWMA has previously experienced collection gaps that residents and community groups have flagged to the Legislature.
Underfunded solid waste services create public health consequences including increased pests and rodents, contaminated runoff, unpleasant odors, and greater risk of exposure to harmful environmental conditions in communities — particularly near bin sites and transfer stations.
Both Bovoni and Anguilla remain under federal court-supervised consent decrees. Without reliable funding, VIWMA's ability to meet federally mandated milestones for landfill closure, groundwater monitoring, and gas collection — requirements tied to ongoing federal court oversight — remains in question.
Bovoni Landfill
A 34-acre unlined facility in Estate Bovoni that typically accepts around 117,000 tons of municipal solid waste annually. Under a federal consent decree since the early 2000s. EPA regulations require it to have closed years ago. The territory's plan, given limited available land on St. Thomas, focuses on expanding the existing site rather than opening a new one. Under contract management services supervised by VIWMA personnel. A fire in September 2023 drew renewed federal and public attention to the site.
Anguilla Landfill
A 30-acre unlined facility on St. Croix that accepts roughly 75,000 tons of waste and scrap annually. Under a federal consent decree since 2006. Sits close enough to the Henry E. Rohlsen Airport that birds feeding on the landfill represent a documented aviation hazard — a federal order has required relocation for years. In partnership with the U.S. DOJ, VIWMA used GIS analysis to evaluate 66 potential parcels for a new St. Croix landfill; three sites remain under consideration.
Susannaberg Transfer Station
Managed directly by VIWMA, the Susannaberg Transfer Station serves as St. John's primary solid waste facility — receiving waste that is then transported off-island. Also one of three facilities where commercial solid waste tipping fees are assessed, along with Bovoni and Anguilla. Commercial tipping fees were reinstated in January 2022 on a volume basis after the 2017 collapse of the fee structure.
The consent decree problem, plainly stated
Both Bovoni and Anguilla have been operating under federal court-supervised consent decrees for over a decade. A joint status report filed by federal and local attorneys in U.S. District Court in 2023 states plainly that EPA regulations "require that Bovoni and Anguilla should have closed years ago." A federal judge has held quarterly compliance hearings with the V.I. government and the Department of Justice. Neither landfill has closed. Both continue to accept waste daily. The consent decrees were intended to force closure — but they have also created the compliance framework under which VIWMA continues to operate both sites while working toward a path that does not yet exist at full scale.
The Infrastructure, By the Numbers.
Miles of sewer pipeline across the territory — FEMA says all of it is beyond repair
Manholes territory-wide — many collapsing underground as infrastructure ages past its service life
Pump stations across the territory — unreliable power and aging equipment have left some generators inoperable
Wastewater treatment plants — the entire system is slated for full replacement, not rehabilitation
Target year for full replacement of the territory's wastewater infrastructure — if VIWMA stays on pace
The $3.2 Billion Question: Committed vs. Spent
FEMA has obligated $3.2 billion to replace USVI wastewater infrastructure. As of July 2026, here is what has actually been deployed.
Senate Hearings on the Record
VIWMA Faces Questions on $3.2B Wastewater Overhaul — No Construction Schedules Available
The Senate Health, Hospitals and Human Services Committee, chaired by Sen. Ray Fonseca, held an oversight hearing on untreated sewage spilling into territory streets despite a $3.2 billion federal replacement effort. VIWMA's Chief of Wastewater Walton Keith Smith and Chief Engineer Alex Bruney testified. Senators pressed the authority on spending pace, planning, and timelines — and were told that firm design and construction schedules were not available at the time of the hearing. The committee requested a written breakdown of spending by district and project, along with timelines for obligating remaining FEMA funds.
I don't think the Waste Management Authority has a real plan, and any deadlines to spend the $3.2 billion.
Even if the $3.2 billion replaces all public mains and pump stations, we're not going to be able to get the sewage flowing — because private laterals would still be failing.
Can VIWMA spend the money in the time frame that we have — and what urgency is being placed on meeting federal deadlines?
Right now, I think that we are on track. If we continue this focus, finishing the design, starting the construction, going with the timetable that we have right now, if we continue that track, we'll finish in an allotted period of time.
Key Findings from the July 22 Hearing
FEMA has formally concluded that "all wastewater infrastructure is beyond repair" and "cannot be patched or rehabilitated. It requires replacement."
A 42-inch gravity main near the Cancryn pump station on St. Thomas has collapsed underground — forcing VIWMA to operate a temporary pumping system in its place.
Unreliable power and aging equipment have destroyed more than $300,000 in pumps in approximately two months, and left some pump station generators inoperable.
Sewer lines were not replaced during recent reconstruction of First Avenue in Sugar Estate — raising the prospect of having to tear up newly paved road to access failing lines beneath it. Sen. Fonseca called this "unacceptable."
VIWMA's Wastewater Optimization Program, launched in 2024 to maintain the system while preparing for replacement, is tracking progress in the low-30% range. Two new camera trucks for sewer inspections have been received.
Private sewer laterals connecting homes and businesses to public mains cannot be funded with FEMA money — homeowners are responsible. Bruney warned many are old and could require hundreds of millions in separate investment.
FY2026 Budget Hearing: $19M in Vendor Debt Revealed, Staffing Fight Breaks Out
Interim Executive Director Darryl Griffith testified on VIWMA's $53.6 million FY2026 budget request, revealing that the authority owes $19 million to vendors and that operational costs exceed $25 million annually. The hearing also surfaced a disagreement between Griffith and Sen. Blyden over whether VIWMA should be prioritizing fee collection enforcement as a path to affording more staff.
I'm not going to sacrifice paying my contractors to hire more officers that we currently cannot afford.
If you collect more money, you can pay officers.
We have a failing wastewater system that we're working to replace and repair, and it's going to take five to 10 years to fully complete — but we will get it done. These islands are too beautiful to let that not happen.
We are confident these projects will deliver lasting benefits to the environment, the economy and communities.
Post-Bovoni Fire Briefing: Senators Want Answers on Health, Schools, Air Quality
Following the September 2023 Bovoni Landfill fire, senators were briefed on VIWMA operations. Executive Director Richard Merritt Jr. testified that $50 million is required for disposal and treatment services and waste and water collection — but only $35 million was allocated from the General Fund for FY2024. Sen. Blyden praised the comprehensiveness of VIWMA's update but pressed for answers the testimony did not include.
I was looking forward to hearing an update regarding the status of the fire, the lessons learned during this ordeal, and a long-term plan to mitigate these issues in the future. Additionally, I wanted to hear what's being done with respect to the pupils and residents as far as health is concerned, reopening the schools, and testing the air quality.
Legislation Tracker
Bills related to VIWMA in the 35th and 36th Legislatures.
July 9, 2026
The Contractor Payment Crisis — May 2025
Months of behind-the-scenes financial tension between VIWMA and one of its main contractors came to a head in May 2025, when Tony Adibe, president of SD&C Inc., threatened to pull rented bypass pumps from active sites on St. Thomas by 5 p.m. on a Friday if the government failed to pay more than $6 million in unpaid invoices — some dating back years. The standoff put active sewer bypass operations at risk. It was a direct consequence of the $19 million in vendor debt revealed at the July 2025 budget hearing, and illustrated the gap between VIWMA's operational needs and its actual payment capacity. The territory's $3.2 billion federal replacement pipeline was in motion — but the pipes in the ground were being held together by contractors who hadn't been paid.
Sources: Virgin Islands Waste Management Authority (viwma.org); VI Consortium; St. Thomas Source; St. John Source; St. John Tradewinds; Virgin Islands Daily News; WTJX News; Oasis Consulting Services project documentation; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); U.S. Department of Justice; Legislature of the U.S. Virgin Islands (legvi.org); Public Services Commission. Senate testimony and quotes drawn from the July 22, 2026 Senate Health, Hospitals and Human Services Committee hearing; the July 21–22, 2025 Senate Budget, Appropriations and Finance Committee FY2026 budget hearing; and the October 3, 2023 Senate operations briefing. Federal consent decree information drawn from court filings in U.S. District Court of the Virgin Islands. Spending figures per VIWMA Chief Engineer Alex Bruney, July 22, 2026. For current landfill schedules and service notices, visit viwma.org.