[ Source: Fiji Government / Facebook ]

The Department of Environment says TNG’s proposed waste-to-energy plant at Vuda Point failed to meet the minimum legal and technical standards required for approval.

It says the decision was based on major gaps in the Environmental Impact Assessment rather than opposition to investment or innovation.

The department found that too many critical issues remained unresolved, with several key matters left for future studies instead of being addressed in the EIA itself.

Permanent Secretary for Environment Dr. Sivendra Michael says one of the biggest concerns was the lack of a proven reference facility operating under conditions similar to Fiji.

“The reference facility should already be operational, not still under development. So something that’s working, something that’s in the same conditions, same characteristics of the environment. And so you can refer to something and benchmark against those operations in order to say what the risks and what are the challenges are, and also what the benefits. And that was not identified at the submission stage of this report because the technology itself was not finalized.”

The ministry says the EIA also failed to adequately justify the project’s reliance on large volumes of imported waste and did not provide clear agreements or approvals from countries expected to supply that waste.

Other major shortcomings included unresolved plans for managing hazardous ash, inadequate assessments of air pollution and health risks, insufficient water supply and engineering studies, and incomplete analysis of climate, groundwater, and coastal impacts.

Director of Environment Senimili Baleicakau says the Technical Review Committee concluded the report did not provide an adequate basis for approval.

“The technical review committee concluded that the EIA report did not provide an adequate basis to approve the EIA report. As per the powers vested in me as the Director of Environment, I considered the technical review committee’s assessment and their recommendation, together with the relevant material, before the department. The department concurred with the recommendation that was provided by the committee and therefore issued its decision earlier today in rejecting the EIA report.”

The department identified 21 grounds for rejection, including concerns over land use compatibility, tourism impacts, social and cultural effects, emergency response planning, economic viability, and incomplete baseline environmental data.

While the EIA has been rejected, TNG has 21 working days to appeal the decision to the Environmental Tribunal, with the department maintaining there is no legal basis for major omissions in the report to be addressed after submission.