VUDA INCINERATOR PROJECT REJECTED

The Department of Environment has rejected the Environmental Impact Assessment report for the proposed Energy-from-Waste Plant and private port facility at Vuda Point.

The proposal was submitted by The Next Generation Holdings (Fiji) Pte Limited.

Permanent Secretary for Environment and Climate Change, Dr Sivendra Michael, said the decision was not against investment or new waste solutions, but was based on whether the EIA report met the legal and technical standards required for approval.

“This is not a decision against investment or against new waste solutions. It is a decision on whether the EIA Report met the legal and technical standards required for approval. It did not,” Dr Michael said.

The review found that several major issues remained unresolved, including the scale of the project, waste supply, imported waste, hazardous ash management, water supply, public health risks, environmental impacts, road and port infrastructure, social and cultural impacts, tourism impacts, and the overall economic case for the project.

Dr Michael said that for a project of this scale, the Department had to be satisfied that the risks to people, communities, the environment, culture, livelihoods and the economy were properly assessed and could be properly managed.

He said several critical matters were left for future assessment instead of being addressed in the EIA itself.

“As a result, the Department was not satisfied that the potential impacts and risks of the project could be adequately assessed or managed,” he said.

The Ministry acknowledged the significant public interest in the proposal and thanked the traditional landowners of Vuda, residents of Vuda and Saweni, government agencies, civil society organisations, technical experts, businesses and members of the public who participated in the review process.

The details of the decision will be discussed at a press conference at 3.00pm today (4 June 2026) at Level 4, Bali Towers, Toorak, Suva.

The Ministry said it remains committed to transparent, lawful and evidence-based environmental decision-making in the public interest.

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