MIAMI (WSVN) – A new incinerator for Miami-Dade County and its proposed location continues to generate strong opinions among residents and local leaders.
Tuesday was the deadline for a joint proposal from Florida Power & Light and FCC Environmental Services to build an incinerator in the county, but that deadline was missed.
The discussion was pulled from the agenda when Miami-Dade County commissioners were set to hear a proposal for the county’s $2 billion incinerator.
“It brings me no joy not to have this item on the agenda, today, as I’m sure some of you all may share that frustration with me,” Miami-Dade County Commission Chairman Anthony Rodriguez said.
“That submission was short, some very material information, for example, things like there was no property selected, no property cost,” said Miami-Dade County Chief Utilities and Regulatory Services Officer Roy Coley. “I don’t know how we move forward until we select a property, and we still don’t have a property selected, and we weren’t recommended one by the proposer.”
County commissioners were supposed to hear and discuss details on a new proposed location, as well as a cost plan from the two developers for that new incinerator, which will replace the one that burned down back in 2023 in Doral.
“Today was the deadline for the consortium, that’s FCC and FPL, to bring a negotiated memorandum of understanding to the board, it’s a consortium I think is a great idea in theory, but if they can’t get their act together and bring us a firm plan on how our residents are going to benefit, then we have problems, and we need to revisit the consortium,” said Commissioner Danielle Cohen Higgins.
Meanwhile, protestors lined up outside and held signs to show their opposition to an incinerator.
“An incinerator has no place in Miami-Dade, and it certainly has no place anywhere near the Everglades,” said a protestor.
“We call on Miami-Dade to take the billions it would cost to build this incinerator, and instead invest it in true zero-waste solutions,” said another protestor.
Over the years, it’s been a contentious battle to find a new location, as many residents and environmentalists have pushed back on every proposed site and its possible billion-dollar price tag, stating the negative impact on public health and the Everglades.
Now with the deadline missed, while Miami-Dade commissioners are frustrated, they want to make sure they have all the information in place before moving forward.
“As I understand it from talking to the two parties — and they’ve explained it, I guess, to everybody — is that they’re still in discussions and they haven’t reached, the right word is not agreement, they haven’t reached a conclusion that they can proffer to the county commission yet in its entirety now,” said Commissioner Juan Carlos Bermudez.
“The details are going to be massively problematic, and we don’t have the convenience of time here. So this needs to go out to bid, we need to come to a final landing place, we need to select a site, and we need to get this ball rolling,” said Commissioner Danielle Cohen Higgins.
Bermudez said with that deadline now missed, everything has been put on hold. He said the chairman now has to make the decision on when the next deadline will be for the new proposal to be received.
In a statement released Tuesday afternoon, FPL said:
Florida Power & Light is working collaboratively with FCC Environmental Services to advance a joint project that serves the best interests of the County and its residents. Developing an agreement of this significance requires time and care to ensure it is fair, thorough, and responsive to the public interest. We are working diligently and look forward to providing the Commission with an update in May.
County leaders received a financial model on April 17, which they plan on sending to their financial advisors to review and validate.
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