TNG says this is the same category of material currently filling Fiji's landfills and it is not special, exotic, or industrial but it is the rubbish that communities generate every day.
They say hazardous chemical waste, medical or clinical waste, radioactive materials, industrial toxic waste and any waste classified as hazardous under applicable law do not go into an Energy-from-Waste plant.
They stress that these categories are subject to entirely separate, far stricter regulatory regimes and are explicitly excluded from the feedstock of this facility.
TNG says this is not a preference, it is a design and legal requirement.
They say TNG Fiji's EIA, prepared by international environmental consultants GHD and submitted to Fiji's Department of Environment in March 2026, sets out the waste classification framework in full detail.
They say the distinction between hazardous and non-hazardous waste is not a technicality but it is the legal and scientific foundation on which every question about Fiji's treaty obligations must be assessed.
They have also clarified that Qereqeretabua is correct that Fiji signed the Waigani Convention in 1995 and ratified it in 1996 and TNG Fiji fully acknowledges Fiji's obligations under that instrument and supports its purpose without reservation.
However, they say the full title for Waigani Convention is the Convention to Ban the Importation into Forum Island Countries of Hazardous and Radioactive Wastes and to Control the Transboundary Movement and Management of Hazardous Wastes within the South Pacific Region.
They say the Convention exists to prevent Pacific nations from becoming destinations for hazardous and radioactive waste.
TNG says this is a protection TNG Fiji actively supports, but the Convention applies only to hazardous and radioactive waste and it does not regulate, restrict, or prohibit the movement of non-hazardous waste.
They stresses this is not TNG's interpretation, it is the text of the Convention itself.
TNG says because the waste to be processed at the Vuda facility is non-hazardous municipal solid waste, the Waigani Convention does not apply to this project.
They add the EIA has now moved to the Technical Review Committee stage and TNG Fiji welcomes this.
The Ministry has confirmed there will be no political interference and no predetermined outcome and TNG says they accept and support that assurance.
TNG says they encourage all Fijians, including members of parliament to engage with the EIA documentation and the outputs of the technical review as the authoritative basis for assessing this project.
They adds that is the
process Fiji's law provides, and it is the right place for these
questions to be resolved.
Questions have been sent to Qereqeretabua. She is yet to respond.
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