EDITORIAL: Illegal dumping still a major problem
JUST a few years ago, it was said that stiff penalties for environmental breaches would be forthcoming through the Environmental Management Act.
Key officials from the Ministry of Environment and Drainage said at the time that they would be pushing to have the Environmental Management Act brought on stream in Barbados, to ensure stiff penalties for those who engage in acts of illegal dumping.
Fast forward to the year 2017 and we see that the issue of illegal dumping continues to raise its ugly head. In some areas of the country residents are crying out, suggesting that waste haulers are moving into their communities and engaging in the practice of illegal dumping, creating a bad stench in some cases as well as troubling health problems for some residents.
It appears that what we would not want for ourselves, we are prepared to dish out to others. Who really wants rubbish and offensive smelling materials dumped anywhere in their community? There are designated spots for specific types of garbage and waste haulers and even the ordinary man or woman who decides to get rid of refuse, really needs to be responsible and ensure that whilst one problem is being solved, another is not being created.
We are hearing that officials from the Ministry of Health are moving to crack down on illegal dumping and such a move is commendable. However, we need to see stiffer penalties handed down to those who engage in the deplorable practice of illegal dumping, to help stamp it out. In the past, we have seen moves made to get illegal dumpers to clean up dump sites and this is a great move as well. However, we cannot allow persons to think that they can break the law and if caught, that they can simply clean up the site in question and that’s that. We must send a strong message that illegal dumping cannot be tolerated.
After all, our health is at risk.
This country also needs to address the niggling issue of littering. The man, or woman for that matter, who throws the remnants of a meal through his or her car window and drives along on his or her merry way, needs to understand that he or she is contributing to a bigger problem – that of harming the environment. And so, what may be seen as just “a small action” of littering, as compared to “a big one”, which sees someone dumping a truck load of waste in a no dumping zone, is really just as bad since by either action, a message is being sent that we care little or nothing about our environment. What we must consider is that every little box left to litter and line our streets out in the beautiful countryside or in the busy City will add up and our sweet little paradise will be a haven for rodents and vermin on the whole. It also creates an eyesore when we see garbage strewn here and there.
Our actions also say a lot about our character. Therefore, I would hope that as proud Barbadians, we really dig deep and determine to do right, irrespective of who is watching us at the time. Let us not be eye servants, but true to ourselves and let us begin to truly care about this little country that we have to live in, and cut out the bad and illegal practices.