Decision on relocation of incinerator will remain uncertain

By: Diana Bello Aristizábal

DORAL, FL – The long-awaited decision on where to relocate the incinerator, or Waste-to-Energy facility, that has been taking news headlines since February 2023 has been delayed once again after public pressure to stir it away from Doral that even involved the son of the elected president at some point.

On the Dec. 3 Miami-Dade County Board of County Commissioners meeting, the proposal of the Board of Commissioners Chairman, Anthony Rodriguez, to introduce a 90-day deferral on the decision regarding the site of the waste-to-energy plant was approved unanimously not without controversy and heated arguments exchanged by some commissioners. 

During the meeting, commissioners did not only vote for the deferral, but took the opportunity to once again discuss what’s at stake with the incinerator, such as the cost for all county districts should the facility be moved out of Doral, while some commissioners showed exasperation at the fact this item has been deferred three times following the fire almost two years ago, on Feb. 12, 2023. 

The item will be discussed at a Committee of the Hall scheduled for January, although a specific date wasn’t revealed at the meeting. The purpose of it is to bring back all the issues related with waste that affect not only Doral, but the county as a whole, and to evaluate in detail all the options the county has to relocate the incinerator. 

“When we meet in January, I’m going to ask a lot of questions,” said District 12 Commissioner, Juan Carlos Bermudez, during the Board of County Commissioners meeting, while he also pointed out that making a decision on the new location of the incinerator without discussing first all the issues around waste, including recycling, composting and landfills, is simply terrible. 

After the January meeting, commissioners will vote on a final decision on where to relocate the incinerator at the second meeting of February that according to the Miami-Dade County Government website is scheduled for Feb. 19.

The new deferral represents yet another turn in the saga over the destination of the controversial incinerator that has prompted numerous council meetings, statements and workshops in Doral throughout the year to expose the effects of bringing back a facility that before the fire of 2023 was always a nuisance and a reason of distress for many residents. 

Since the beginning of the quest for a new location, several organizations, Doral residents, City of Doral Mayor, Christi Fraga, and councilmembers, as well as District 12 Commissioner, Juan Carlos Bermudez, have soundly expressed disapproval of placing the future site within the city.

They all did so back in April when the firm Arcadis presented a detailed report of the cons and pros of the three proposed sites for the incinerator: Doral, Airport West and Medley.

Then, on Sept. 17, when everyone thought the verdict on the relocation of the site was going to be released, the item was deferred days after Miami-Dade Mayor, Daniella Levine Cava, firmly recommended Airport West for the relocation.

An unexpected turn of events in the incinerator saga

Despite of Doral residents having enjoyed a little bit of certainty for two months between September and November, the journey on choosing a new location for the incinerator faced a new bump when Daniella Levine Cava reversed course and released a memorandum on Nov. 22 recommending that the new Waste-to-Energy Facility be kept within the City of Doral at the existing Resources Recovery Facility site.

In her memorandum, she said all the sites out of Doral are too expensive and would increase costs for the 350,000 homes that rely on the Miami-Dade Department of Solid Waste Management to collect residues. In addition, Levine Cava stated the relocation would represent a great financial burden for Doral taxpayers in order to compensate costs. 

This announcement came after a special meeting held on Nov. 4 in which the City of Doral Council unanimously instructed the City’s administration and attorneys to take all action necessary to prohibit the relocation of the incinerator in Doral, and provide a good faith offer of $40 million for its relocation.

“We are disappointed to learn of the newly released report by Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava where she recommends that the new incinerator be rebuilt in Doral,” stated City of Doral Mayor, Christi Fraga, through a press release aimed at asking for resident involvement at the Dec. 3 meeting, a call to action that was later cancelled following the possibility of a 90-days deferral. 

A similar sentiment was shared by District 12 Commissioner Juan Carlos Bermudez through an official statement back then that also sought to mobilize residents to the Dec. 3 meeting to put pressure on the matter.

“In walking back the recommendation she made to use the Airport West site as the location for the new Waste-to-Energy Facility and Solid Waste Campus, Mayor Cava has buckled to special interests, shown poor judgement and lack of leadership, has let Doral Residents down, our County’s Residents down, and the environment down. The existing Doral-site is the closest to residents and to the Everglades National Park,” he wrote in the statement. 

Both Christi Fraga and Juan Carlos Bermudez moved fast following Miami-Dade Mayor announcement to seek support from external parties.

City of Doral Mayor, on her part, met with members of the community, including representatives from Trump National Doral “whose investment in our city and commitment to its success are invaluable,” said Fraga via Instagram.

“Their immediate support, along with that of other community leaders, amplified our message: building an incinerator in Doral is unacceptable and would have devastating consequences for our city.”

Juan Carlos Bermudez did its due diligence too by meeting with Eric Trump, the Trump National Doral Resort team and other key stakeholders in what he labeled as a “productive meeting.”

“I communicated to them the County administration’s misguided decision to construct a new Waste-to-Energy Facility (WTE) at the existing incinerator site in the City of Doral as well as to begin composting operations at other sites adjacent to Doral,” Bermudez said on a statement. 

Given the facts, it seems the united efforts of the community, the massive involvement of residents voicing out their opposition, the input of community leaders and organizations like Trump National Doral, a key player in the city, have ended in a deferral of an issue that shouldn’t continue to be extended for much longer after almost two years of sparkled controversy. Residents claim and deserve certainty.