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'There'll be no more dumping in Norbrook'
NSWMA to move against violators
BY COREY ROBINSON Environment Watch staff reporter robinsonc@jamaicaobserver.com
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
THE National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA) has said that it will be going after people who illegally dump garbage in sections of the upscale Norbrook community in St Andrew.
Andre Wiltshire, the NSWMA's director of enforcement and compliance, said the agency has dispatched enforcement officers to locations within the community where people are illegally dumping garbage. On average, he said, two to three enforcement officers patrol the community alongside the police in search of violators. They work, according to Wiltshire, between 6:00 am and 5:00 pm - the hours within which illegal dumping would normally take place.
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| A pile of garbage left in the vicinity of the upscale Norbrook community and the informal settlement of Congo Town in St Andrew. (File photo) |
"Their duty is to stop any dumping from taking place, and anyone caught doing so will be prosecuted," he said.
Wiltshire's statements come just weeks after Environment Watch brought to public attention the illegal dumping taking place in the opulent community, following complaints by residents.
Truckers, the residents said, were illegally disposing of garbage in the area while, at the same time, also illegally mining a gully there. And they lamented that they were being affected by the dust and noise pollution from the passing trucks.
When Environment Watch visited sections of the community and a neighbouring informal settlement called Congo Town, there was evidence of illegal garbage dumping. Scrap metal and what appeared to be plyboard/wood were seen sorted into piles in some areas, in addition to a heap of assorted items. There was also evidence of mining, but whether that was illegal or not was not immediately clear since it could not be determined when or under what conditions the mounds of silt had been mined.
Last Thursday, Wiltshire said illegal dumping in the community was now at an end.
"Months ago when there was dumping in Norbrook Close we clamped down on that individual and he cleared up the area," he said.
As it relates to the clearing away of garbage already discarded in the community, Wiltshire said, "Well, we have not gotten around to that as yet".
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