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Minister expresses concerns over health of waste pickers
Minister within the Ministry of Communities, Dawn Hastings-Williams
Minister within the Ministry of Communities, Dawn Hastings-Williams has expressed concerns over the health of waste pickers attached to the Haags Bosch sanitary landfill site.
The Minister, during a recent tour of the site, noted that while there were certain developments at the facility, there should be mechanisms to deal with the health hazard of those rummaging through the garbage on a daily basis.
Hastings-Williams said that it is clear that waste picking is a means of survival for many of the pickers. She pointed out however, that this does not negate the fact that there are no systems or mechanisms in place to protect their health.
“We need a system in place to monitor the health of the pickers and ensure that they have basic things in place like sanitisers. I mean these people are just like us at the end of the day, the only difference is that they find it worthwhile working here.”
The Minister said too that based on her interaction with the workers, they find satisfaction in the work that they do.
“I had the pleasure of interviewing a young man who said that he enjoys doing the work, because it brings in the dollars for him, but we still need to consider the health and social welfare of these pickers are properly addressed, “she stressed.
Some of the pickers have been at the landfill site for as long as 25 years.
Minister Hastings- Williams noted therefore that garbage pickers are basically risking their lives to do a work which will benefit us all.
“They are helping to separate the garbage from other materials which are harmful to the environment in keeping with the efforts of the Green, Clean initiative.”
Sometime after it opened, the Local Government Ministry has reported positive outcomes from the waste collection area which has been touted as a vehicle for a “cleaner and greener” Guyana.
The Local Government authorities have claimed significant benefits from the garbage dumping area following the closure of the unsightly and unhealthy Mandela Avenue landfill site, which seemed to be taking over Le Repentir Cemetery, where it was located at the time.
The Haags Bosch facility is located aback of Eccles, East Bank Demerara and was specially slated, according to the authorities, to respond to various environmental and chemical changes that occur at dumpsites.
The Haags Bosch Sanitary Landfill was supposed to allow for the better control of waste taken there, as waste could be separated according to type and disposed of appropriately.
It was explained that the controlled separation of waste allows for the accumulation of data on the different types of waste being disposed of and could lead to the development and implementation of national solid waste disposal policies, such as recycling.
However, Guyana’s growing problem relates to the disposing of plastics, particularly soft drink and water bottles. Plastics, metal, glass and certain other materials have value and their recovery for reuse and recycling can have significant economic advantages.
It has been noted that a cultural change must be taken into consideration to improve the system at the dump site. These involve the landfill management, waste collectors and generators (citizens), for the long term part of the change.
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