KINGSTON, Jamaica — The National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA) will be embarking on a special public education programme this financial year, at a cost of $200 million.

Minister of Local Government and Community Development Desmond McKenzie made the announcement in the House of Representatives on Wednesday, during his contribution to the Sectoral Debate.

He also gave an update on the work of the agency in clearing debris following Hurricane Melissa last October.

“Behaviour change is possible and necessary, and I am looking forward to a greater sense of personal responsibility and civic pride, that is vitally important to a successful reconstruction phase,” McKenzie said.

He pointed out that Jamaica is divided into 4,275 collection districts, and the intention is to ensure that regular waste collection is done every seven to 10 days right across the country. “This is in addition to a specific project to collect 8,000 tonnes of bulky waste,” he stated.

In order to assist the NSWMA, McKenzie made a special appeal for Jamaicans to “practice the agency’s motto in their daily lives: ‘Jamaica’s Beauty is our Duty’. He said the agency’s target of collecting 1.2 million tonnes of waste this year, will be far easier to achieve if practices such as illegal dumping and the casual throwing of garbage onto the streets are significantly reduced.

He told the Parliament that last year, over 2,300 anti-litter tickets were issued, and over 9,000 litter removal notices were issued.

“However, we recognise that a unique intervention is needed to ensure greater levels of civic responsibility,” he said, before announcing the coming public education campaign.

He reminded the Parliament that Melissa deposited over 4.8 million tonnes of debris across south-western Jamaica, representing approximately 480,000 truckloads of construction waste, household items and vegetation.

In response, his ministry provided $500 million for phase one of the national clean-up programme. Within two months following the hurricane, over 27,000 loads of debris was cleared. A further $1 billion was provided to finance phase two of the programme which ran from January to April this year. Over 21,000 truckloads of debris was removed during this phase, amounting to a total of over 48,000 truckloads of waste removed.

McKenzie said this intense programme is still being implemented. He said the 10 tipper trucks bought by the Government and put into service last December, have been crucial to the clearing of debris in the five parishes worst affected by Melissa.

The minister noted that important lessons have been learned and in readiness for this year’s hurricane season the NSWMA is already preparing to do the following:

• Preposition equipment and personnel in strategic areas 48 hours prior to a potential disaster.
• Retain a 30 per cent fuel reserve as well asessential suppliesto ensure full operations for 72 hours after a disaster.
• Agreements are also being developed with suppliers and contractors to provide additional fuel and heavy equipment for disaster response.
• Identify and prepare alternative disposal sites if access to official sites is cut off in a disaster.

— Lynford Simpson