The government plans to build eight landfill sites and upgrade existing ones as part of efforts to improve solid waste management across Guyana, Minister of Local Government and Regional Development Priya Manickchand said yesterday.
She also reiterated that contractors who miss scheduled garbage pickups would have to pay for alternative collection.
Speaking at a press conference in her ministry’s Kingston boardroom, Manickchand said contractors would be held to specific pickup times, replacing a 48-hour grace period that she said had caused serious problems. She said collection had been unreliable in some densely populated communities and that a lack of monitoring had left the authorities dependent on residents to report missed pickups or piles of garbage outside their homes.
“With there being no monitoring, we would be reliant on citizens who complain on Facebook or TikTok or Insta,” she said.
In September Manickchand outlined the change for Georgetown. Under that proposal, City Hall would arrange collection when a contractor missed a pickup and recover the cost from the contractor. Manickchand also said the collection programme would be extended to Neighbourhood Democratic Councils using government-provided tractors, trailers and garbage trucks, with independent monitors reporting directly to the ministry.
The September announcement also included plans for a second collection in densely populated parts of Georgetown and the resumption of carpet waste collection, which Manickchand said had ceased to be routine around 2016 or 2017. By October 5, the ministry crews were collecting household waste overnight along several city routes. In East Ruimveldt, crews found rubbish piled around a full skip bin at a site the ministry had identified as a dumping hotspot.
Manickchand said the new landfill sites and upgrades formed part of the ministry’s plans to improve sanitation across all 10 administrative regions. She also urged residents to take everyday rubbish such as sweet wrappers, snack bags and takeaway boxes home for disposal.
“I know we are very far from being where I would like to see us be,” she said. “We don’t have to take long to do this. This could be the quickest fix this country ever saw.”
Manickchand said the ministry was reviewing draft litter enforcement regulations under the Environmental Protection Act. She identified gaps in the existing rules governing who can serve as a litter warden, who can prosecute offences and what fines can be imposed.
“There are some gaps in those regulations, some of which are a limitation on who can be wardens, because only a warden can charge,” she said.
The minister questioned whether existing fines were high enough to deter littering and said the draft was being reviewed with a view to taking it to the National Assembly.
In September, Manickchand said the government was working with the Environmental Protection Agency and the Guyana Police Force to enforce anti-littering laws through the Municipal Court. She said enforcement would apply regardless of a person’s age, occupation or political affiliation.
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