Waste collection will be greatly improved on the island as the Dominica Solid Waste Management Corporation (DSWMC) received four new garbage trucks today.
The trucks are expected to be distributed to the north of the island as well as north eastern, another for the south, south east, and the central area.
“We are here to celebrate with the Dominica Solid Waste Management Corporation,” General Manager of the DSWMC Florian Mitchell said during a handing over ceremony. “Last year in October we had some discussions with the Prime Minister on the whole discharge of waste management services…we all note the challenges we were having with the accurate discharge of waste management services, and the public, by and large, we understand your resolve in being forthcoming and our inability at times to collect timely, so this handing over ceremony will basically improve on our efficiency.”
According to him, the DSWMC has been promised a certain number of garbage trucks, the corporation has received six in total and is expecting another two in December this year.
“So the compliment will greatly enhance our fleet,” Mitchell stated.
Furthermore, he argued that even if the corporation has the entire fleet, waste management still requires the involvement of stakeholders.
“So the government will make human resource, financial resource, equipment available, but you and I are the custodians of the community. We have [integrated] levels of responsibility,” he emphasized.
From the residential standpoint, he explained that waste is something that people generate as they consume goods and services, “and we as residents have a critical role in storing the waste that we generate.”
“So we can have all the trucks, but if we do not adhere to the protocols by sorting at source, separating your waste, placing your waste out on the dates and time, as per collection schedule, that will help greatly,” Mitchell explained.
He went on to add that commercial entities must also play their part.
Mitchell mentioned a significant challenge that is being experienced in the City of Roseau.
“I would like us as stakeholders to know of our role,” he urged. “The government is clearly demonstrating by what we can see in the background, its role of managing waste, but from the commercial and residential, we have our role to play.”
Mitchell added, “To the commercial entities I will call on you to ensure that you take ownership of the waste that is generated at your facility, that you utilize an approved hauler to haul your waste from your establishment to the landfill and refrain from using unauthorized personnel or vagrants, especially in the context of the Roseau City Centre and put it all over the road and expect somebody to collect it at anytime.”
He said that by adhering to these basic principles, the issues or challenges can be resolved.
Meanwhile, Minister for Environment, Rural Modernisation, Kalinago Upliftment and Constituency Empowerment Cozier Frederick said the government is currently making investments in the landfill.
“We are making investments, investments in the landfill. As we speak, we will be setting up a proper shed for recycling, we are bringing in new trucks, we are engaging the communities in their own development of their recycling initiatives,” he said. “We have been working with schools for a number of months now, and we have seen a little shift in consciousness. And that is very important for us.”
He also said that his government is moving ahead in looking at public campaigns and public engagements to reach out, teach, and re-educate citizens to keep the nature island brand intact.
“Because we realize at the corporation, even at the ministry in general, that some of the things that people should know or ought to know as citizens they seem to be unaware of,” Frederick stated. “And we want to challenge ourselves to continue to engage folks to ensure that they know their responsibilities as a citizen.”
While the trucks are operational on the road, Frederick believes it is the responsibility of the public to also play their part and stick to the schedule, “ to make sure the bags are properly packaged, they are lifted from the ground, that we do not create a space that is untidy.”
He called on the listening public to take this very seriously.
The Fond Cole landfill site is over capacity by around 100% or more and waste is now simply being buried in the ground. This results in gas and chemical build up and leaching which results in toxic fumes and fires. The solution is to build a new landfil (they are not just holes in the ground – they are designed and engineered to properly handle waste). The Fond Cole landfill site was financed by the EU. As for recyclimg – this is a myth. Dominica has no recycling facilities for glass, plastic or electronic waste. It simply compacts what it can, then stuffs containers and ships the waste elsewhere. While glass does indeed end up at a recycling plant, plastics end up contributing to massive environmental pollution in Indonesia and electronic waste is shipped to West Africa, where it is added to the mountains of such waste there. Cozier Frederick is full of hot air and has no clue. We need proper investment and expertise otherwise ‘nature island’ is meaningless.