This situation is most definitely a health hazard

Jan 24, 2020 Letters

DEAR EDITOR,

I wish to bring to the attention of the Ministry of Public Health, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Mayor, Georgetown City Council a very disturbing situation which has been aired before but still persists to the detriment of those affected.
Now, several years ago, there was a great outcry in the Princes Street, Lodge area about the dumpsite that was created. It was subsequently shut down. A few years later, residents in Princes Street complained that the Municipal Cleansing Department had been dumping rubbish in that compound. The then mayor, Hamilton Green, denied that it was so. Whether he was aware or not of the truth of the fact is not known. Here we have a similar situation surfacing again.
Now, we all know that the chimney (Old Smokey) was partially demolished several years ago and the land site, Haag Bosh is the allocated site for the city’s refuse disposal. There is now a mountain of refuse on location in the Cleansing Department compound. Trucks are seen dumping waste in the compound. When it rains residents and road users have to put up with the putrid scent that emanates from the area. I had the misfortune to be in a vehicle that reversed onto a bridge of the Municipal compound and was shocked to see workers (security maybe) sitting on chairs inhaling the foul smell that has saturated their working environment. Fires are sometimes lit on the refuse and clouds of smoke are seen billowing into the Charlestown/Albouystown area.
My questions to these entities are: why is this Department accepting refuse when there is a site designed for this purpose? Is someone receiving cash for what is evidently not permissible? Does the Mayor and councillors know of this development? Has permission been given for this new dump site? If so, why? Is this Department a neglected offshoot of the City Council? (Sell the land to private developers) What a waste! Would this be done in Bel Air or other such areas? Doesn’t the health of citizens in this area count? There are many babies, small children and elderly folks living in the community. This situation is most definitely a health hazard.
I trust that by highlighting this situation, speedy action will be taken.
Another concern I have is the derelict vehicle that has been left lying at the side of the road opposite the compound for several years. Princes Street is narrow and since the road has been reconstructed there is always a constant flow of traffic. There is no pavement so pedestrians are forced to walk many times in the grass for their own safety. Why hasn’t the city Council moved this truck which they claim is not theirs? They are aware of the presence of the truck. However it was said that it belongs to a staff of the Council. It is time that it is removed.
As a concerned citizen, I have looked at the confusion (broken down fence filled with overgrowth a building that is under renovation for years) that is the compound of the Municipal Cleansing Department. Worth noting is that fuel is stored in the compound and despite the fact that there is large land space available, the trucks are all competing for parking space. Should there be a fire, the few trucks owned by the municipality and workers would be at risk. That compound is a shameful sight. I suggest they take down the sign that says cleansing. It’s a disgrace, but then the Town Hall is no better. Neither is Stabroek Market. Bourda Market stinks to high hell.
Don’t we have town planners? The madness around Stabroek Square has me doubtful. Sigh.
Just a thought. Perhaps Bourda Market could be raised to another level to accommodate the vendors and the lower level used as a paid parking lot to ease some congestion in the city. Same could be done for Stabroek Market.

Regards,
J. Hinds

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