Montego Bay, March 12, 2019 – Jamaica – Regulations to govern solid waste management in the island are expected to be completed in short order.
“They
are in the final stages now,” said Executive Director of the National Solid
Waste Management Authority (NSWMA), Audley Gordon.
“So for
those people who are anxious for us to be more robust in our enforcement
strategy, the regulations to empower us are near completion and we are looking
at months. Then we will have the kind of enforcement strategy that the public
expects of us,” he added.
Mr.
Gordon was speaking to journalists at the first clean-up activity under the Western
Parks and Markets (WPM) enforcement initiative in Negril, Westmoreland, recently. He said that among the critical areas that
will be covered under the regulations is public cleansing.
“There
is much more that we can do; for example, we can demand of people to produce
proof, especially commercial entities, that they have proper arrangements in
place to remove their solid waste,” Mr. Gordon said.
He
noted that the regulations also cover e-waste, which addresses the proper way
to discard electronic appliances such as mobile phones, computers and
television sets.
“We do
not want those things mixing with the regular garbage. There must be a proper
was in which we deal with them. We have already secured a site through the
Sugar Company of Jamaica in Hill Run (St. Catherine), which will temporarily
house e-waste until we can export it or an investor can take it off us, because
there is a market for those discarded items,” Mr. Gordon pointed out.
“We
need somewhere in the West as well, where we can have a permanent base and can
say to the public, this is where you take it (e-waste), so that it is not
thrown around and pose a danger to our children,” he continued.
Mr.
Gordon noted that fines associated with the regulations will provide a deterrent
against breaches.
The cleaning operation in Negril was focused on clearing waste
items as well as overgrown plants at two open lots in the resort town.
The initiative was undertaken by WPM in an effort to destroy
mosquito and rodent breeding sites, and to prevent the lots from becoming
dumping sites.
Contact: Serena Grant
Release: JIS
Photo Caption: Executive Director of the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA), Audley Gordon, speaking to journalists during a clean-up activity in Negril, Westmoreland, recently.
Serena
Grant Photo