KINGSTON, Jamaica – Government officials will provide an update on the fire and related developments at the Riverton City Landfill in a special Jamaica House media briefing that is slated for 3:00 pm today.

The Minister of State in the Ministry of Local Government Colin Fagan, Director of the Met Office Jeffrey Spooner, Dr Sonia Copeland of the Ministry of Health, ODPEM Director General Major Clive Davis, and Chairman of the NSWMA Steve Ashley are all expected to be in attendance.

Meanwhile, the Private Sector Organisation and the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) have both expressed concern and are calling on the responsible officials to provide answers on the latest fire.

 “At a time when the country is faced with pressing fiscal, economic, and societal issues, we are once again being distracted by a Riverton dump fire that as far as we are concerned is an avoidable problem” the PSOJ said in a release.

The organisation noted that these fires at the dump seem to be a constant feature throughout the years and consecutive administrations seem to be unable to bring them under control.

PSOJ President William Mahfood said, “It is unacceptable that we continue to be affected year after year with these fires, which is not just a strain on our scarce fiscal resources, but plays havoc on the health of many Jamaicans, including small children. The Government must find a way to put an end to this constant inconvenience, especially at a time when the country is grappling with economic and social challenges.”

The PSOJ requested the responsible authority to provide a comprehensive report on the latest fire and also to address the matter of accountability.

While, Opposition Spokesman on Land and the Environment Senator Alexander Williams called for a full investigation of the operations and management of the NSWMA regarding the authority’s control of the “too frequent fires at the Riverton City dump”.

“I am amazed at the approach taken by NEPA in seeking to protect Jamaican citizens from the negligence and poor performance of NSWMA. NSWMA is in breach of previous enforcement notices imposed on them by NEPA, and they are now belatedly simply serving suspension notices,” he said.

Williams added that, “it is disgraceful that NSWMA is obviously willing to degrade the environment and seriously threaten public health because of their inefficiency”, he noted.  “Each fire costs a minimum of $50,000,000 to bring it under control”.