PHILIPSBURG:--- The St. Maarten Development Fund (SMDF) hosted an informative enforcement training session for stakeholders in preparation for the proposed legislative changes connected to Plastic Free SXM. SMDF’s Managing Director, Makhicia Brooks, opened the sessions by introducing the Plastic Free SXM project, emphasizing its goal of reducing and ultimately eliminating single-use plastics and polystyrene through community action and legislative change.
SMDF executed Plastic Free SXM on behalf of the Government of St. Maarten between January 2023 & February 2025, with support from the Resilience, Sustainable Energy, and Marine Biodiversity Programme (RESEMBID), funded by the European Union and implemented by Expertise France. The legislative framework developed as part of Plastic Free SXM was submitted to the Ministry of General Affairs in December 2024. This proposed legislation seeks to restrict the production, importation, distribution, and sale of specific single-use plastic and polystyrene foam products.
At the start of the project, stakeholders, including controllers and inspectors, were engaged in consultations and data collection to help shape the proposed legislation. Their input was instrumental in drafting regulations that are both practical and enforceable.
Now that the legislation has been finalized and is on its path to review and future parliamentary approval, the follow-up training was held to further familiarize these stakeholders with the enforcement mechanisms and their roles in implementation. Held over two days, the training featured four sessions lasting three hours each, with over 40 participants in attendance. These included Controllers from the Inspectorate of Economic and Transport Affairs (IETA), Inspectors from the Ministry of Public Health, Social Development, and Labor, and Customs Officers.
Carla Vlaun, Managing Director of Tackling Law, the firm that won the public tender in October 2023 to produce the legislation, presented an overview of the key legislative provisions, which will restrict the importation, production, distribution, and sale of several single-use plastic items. The first phase of restrictions will apply to plastic shopping bags, straws, stirrers, and styrofoam food containers. The legislation also includes strict enforcement mechanisms to address the environmental and public health risks posed by plastic waste.
Once enacted, the law will carry a maximum fine of ANG 100,000, a measure that was received with some surprise, but overall strong support from training participants, noting that "stronger fines establish the gravity of an issue and lay the groundwork for effective enforcement."
“With the legislation now in the hands of the Government of St. Maarten, the next steps involve finalizing its trajectory towards Parliament for approval. SMDF remains committed to working alongside government agencies, businesses, and environmental organizations to support the transition to more sustainable practices,” Brooks concluded.
If approved by Parliament, the proposed legislation includes a transition period, with an outlined phase-out schedule, with six-month intervals between bans at various levels of the supply chain, from production and importation to local wholesale distribution and retail sales.
For more information on the initiative, visit www.plasticfree.sx.
WILLEMSTAD CURACAO:--- This year there was a special addition to the Big Carnival Parade of Curaçao: for the first time, a military Steelband participated in the parade. The band makes an energetic musical contribution with specially rehearsed Tumba and Soca numbers.
Panama City, Panama:--- Tadzio Bervoets, Technical Officer for the Caribbean Sustainable Blue Financing and Blue Economies (BluEFin) Project at the Caribbean Biodiversity Fund and Chair of the UNESCO Ocean Decade Task Force for Tropical Americas and the Caribbean, recently led key discussions at the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO (IOC/UNESCO) Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) Forum, held from February 18–21, 2025, at the Marriott Executive Apartments Panama City, Finisterre.
