In an interesting outcome to a recent caycompass.com online poll, over two-thirds of the respondents said they conserved, but they knew they could be greener.

If one accepts the principle that acknowledgement is the first step in solving a problem, it seems the Cayman Islands populace would like to get greener.  The problem is, the Cayman Islands Government isn’t on the same page.

As one of the poll respondents pointed out, nearly all of Cayman’s green initiatives are driven by the private sector, not the government.  When it comes the being green, the government is no better than a pale shade of lime.

The country has a disgraceful landfill situation, with a towering mountain of trash dominating the George Town landscape.   Pollutants leaching from the dump are poisoning the waters of one of Cayman’s most precious resources, the North Sound.

Although successive governments have commissioned expensive reports, paid for trips to multiple places abroad to learn about waste management, all we’ve heard is talk. 

Campaign promises have been quickly forgotten, or at least dismissed because of cost. If this country thinks proper waste management is too expensive, it should consider the costs of a poisoned environment.

Although the government should not be expected to regulate the amount of electricity or water residents use, there are no good reasons the government should not mandate recycling of cans, glass and plastic.

Even if there is no money in recycling anything but metal, glass can be crushed and used in paving aggregate or mixed with marl for rough land fill; light-weight plastic can be shipped off island to prevent it from going to the dump. In addition, tough laws should govern the disposal of things like batteries, chemicals, oil and toxic liquids.

If the government were to lead the green movement, residents would follow, especially if they had no choice.

But as long as the government walks the fence, too afraid to upset voters and not wanting to spend the money to do what is required, Cayman’s environmental problems will continue to worsen. Residents, meanwhile, will continue to conserve just a little through private sector initiatives, knowing all the while, they could be a lot greener.