EDITORIAL - Talking trash: worrying health concerns

Public-health warnings have been slow to come to Kingston and its environs, though from all accounts the toxic plumes from the Riverton City dump have been creating serious respiratory and other problems for many city dwellers since Monday.

How does the image of our island paradise square with an ignited landfill emitting toxic pollutants into the air, blanketing the capital in a smoky haze and reducing visibility for miles?

All of this points to an obvious breakdown in environmental management that is not good for the country's image as a tourist destination.

The negative health impact of toxic air is well documented, and includes bronchitis, asthma and heart-related diseases. The burning of Riverton City dump is an old story, with observers trying to determine whether the latest incident is worse than the one before. Surely, the agencies in charge of solid waste must have learnt something from previous episodes about the prevention and mitigation of landfill fires.

There are suggestions that this latest fire had been deliberately set by persons seeking to benefit from work to put out the blaze. If it can be proven that this is so, someone should be held accountable. It will cost millions of dollars and has engaged considerable manpower and heavy-duty equipment and other resources to put out this fire.

But even without the design of arsonists, it is known that landfill fires can ignite spontaneously and smoulder for many weeks, releasing odorous and noxious smoke. So landfills need constant monitoring and significant engineering controls.

There are indications that Riverton City is an open facility, admitting all and sundry. This must be addressed as a matter of urgency for the cost to the Government and householders will be much more than the price tag for enclosing the facility and making it secure.

Encouraging environmental advocates

Environmental advocates have been demanding sweeping changes to the management of solid waste for many years. But rather than back off, this newspaper would like to encourage these advocates to wield their heft to ensure that the necessary changes are made to safeguard quality of life and health in Jamaica. There is too much at stake for them to stop now. Even healthy persons are feeling the ill-effects of the Riverton landfill fires.

From motor oil to radiator fluid to paints, solvents and medical waste, everything goes into the Riverton City landfill because we have not yet developed a culture of recycling or detoxifying hazardous waste. And we need to decide that this is a matter that requires immediate action.

We once heard talk from the National Solid Waste Management Authority of a plan to incinerate rubbish for electricity generation. It sounded like a good idea at the time, but we have become accustomed to a long interval between announcement and implementation.

All the agencies concerned with the generation, transportation, treatment, storage and disposal of waste need to come together and decide on a better, more efficient way to deal with waste.

Let us begin by segregating recyclables and non-recyclables. Let us employ fire identity and control technologies so we are better able to manage future landfill fires. It will not be a quick and inexpensive undertaking, but the country has to recognise that such an investment will go a long way towards protecting health and the environment.

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