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PETRE WILLIAMS, Observer senior reporter williamsp@jamaicaobserver.com
Monday, January 07, 2008
THE National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA) on Saturday continued its drive to rid Jamaican communities of garbage and other waste by cleaning several sections of South St Andrew.
The effort, for which $5 million has been budgeted, saw six trucks and cranes transporting heavy garbage such as refrigerators and old cars from the communities, while volunteers and NSWMA workers attended to the sweeping and other cleaning of the areas.
The clean-up is being undertaken under the theme: 'Jamaica's beauty is everybody's duty'.
"The idea is to bring into the communities other citizens and to take away not only the physical garbage but also the mental garbage," said state minister responsible for local government matters Bobby Montague. The effort, he added, was geared at community upliftment.
Executive director of the NSWMA, Joan Gordon-Webley, attested to this. According to Gordon-Webley, the idea is to extend the waste management agency's efforts beyond the main roads and into the bellies of communities to do "deep" cleaning.
"I have been around and I have seen the type of debris in the areas and the children playing in it. I fear for them," the NSWMA boss told the Observer. "We want to get rid of the old fridges and stoves so that the place can breathe."
She added that public health representatives would be visiting the communities later to spray the areas to prevent the breeding of mosquitoes and other vectors likely to pose health problems for residents.
Jones Town, Trench Town, the Maxfield belt, Sevens Street, Tenth Street, Rema, and Arnett Gardens were among the communities to benefit from the clean-up, which began at about 8:30 am. They are, however, not the only communities to have benefited, and will not be the last.
"There is a monthly selection of some areas, and the communities have been extremely responsive so far," said Montague, adding that building community spirit also formed a part of the motivation for the initiative, which is ongoing in and outside the Corporate Area.
Monday, January 07, 2008
THE National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA) on Saturday continued its drive to rid Jamaican communities of garbage and other waste by cleaning several sections of South St Andrew.
The effort, for which $5 million has been budgeted, saw six trucks and cranes transporting heavy garbage such as refrigerators and old cars from the communities, while volunteers and NSWMA workers attended to the sweeping and other cleaning of the areas.
The clean-up is being undertaken under the theme: 'Jamaica's beauty is everybody's duty'.
"The idea is to bring into the communities other citizens and to take away not only the physical garbage but also the mental garbage," said state minister responsible for local government matters Bobby Montague. The effort, he added, was geared at community upliftment.
Executive director of the NSWMA, Joan Gordon-Webley, attested to this. According to Gordon-Webley, the idea is to extend the waste management agency's efforts beyond the main roads and into the bellies of communities to do "deep" cleaning.
"I have been around and I have seen the type of debris in the areas and the children playing in it. I fear for them," the NSWMA boss told the Observer. "We want to get rid of the old fridges and stoves so that the place can breathe."
She added that public health representatives would be visiting the communities later to spray the areas to prevent the breeding of mosquitoes and other vectors likely to pose health problems for residents.
Jones Town, Trench Town, the Maxfield belt, Sevens Street, Tenth Street, Rema, and Arnett Gardens were among the communities to benefit from the clean-up, which began at about 8:30 am. They are, however, not the only communities to have benefited, and will not be the last.
"There is a monthly selection of some areas, and the communities have been extremely responsive so far," said Montague, adding that building community spirit also formed a part of the motivation for the initiative, which is ongoing in and outside the Corporate Area.
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