From August 20th till 27th the State Secretary Atsma (Infrastructure and Environment) will pay a working visit to Saba, St. Eustatius and Bonaire.
During the working visit the State Secretary will make arrangements with the island governments on the development of the airports, processing of waste, drinking water on Saba and the construction of sewage purification on Bonaire. Besides, Atsma will officially open a renovated lighthouse on Bonaire and there he will put the first container with material to fight oil pollution along the coast.
The visit is within the scope of the new division of responsibilities and arrangements that must be made with the islands since Curaçao and Sint Maarten gained a new country status since October 2010 and Bonaire, Saba and St. Eustatius have become special municipalities of the Netherlands.
On Saba and St. Eustatius, Atsma will hold talks with the island government on the next phase of the implementation of the master plan for the development of the airport, on drinking water and waste problems. He will also visit the port, that needs to be renovated, on Saba. The port is essential for tourism on Saba and for the inhabitants who depend on it for their supplies.
In Bonaire Atsma will officially finalize the maintenance activities of the renovated lighthouse ‘Boca Spelonk’. By handing over the key to the local government of Bonaire, the responsibility for the management and maintenance is also symbolically returned. The renovation of the Boca Spelonk is part of a project in which the Department of Waterways and Public Works will renovate five lighthouses on Bonaire.
In addition, the Secretary of State will launch the necessary connections of the hotels on the sewage purification installation on Bonaire. The new water purification installation can eventually be put into use, so it can be used by all the hotels. The waste water of the hotels then no longer needs to be dumped at sea or to be brought by containers to separate purification locations. The purification of waste water is important for the health of the inhabitants of Bonaire and the protection of the environment.