| City Mayor Hamilton Green is calling for the full brunt of the law to be meted out to persons found littering in the city. The Mayor at a recent press conference revealed that while the Municipality is seeking the co-operation of residents and corporate citizens to reduce the problem of littering in the city, no effort will be spared to bring about a change even with the assistance of the judicial system. “We are hoping that the Magistrates will co-operate with us by imposing the maximum penalty.”The City Mayor related that the Municipality is constantly battling to address the practice of callous littering activities, which seem to be embedded in the culture of some citizens.Clearing the litter in the cityHe alluded to the fact that there are persons who continue to solicit the support of “junkies” to dispose of garbage in a most inappropriate manner thus helping to further compromise the drainage integrity of the city.For this reason, the Mayor said that measures have been engaged to counter the problem in a strategic manner, which entail a campaign being undertaken by the City Constabulary Department aimed at reducing the activities of litterbugs. “We have already had some areas staked out already…We are not going to say when and where but on a 24-hour basis we are going to stake out strategic places.”According to the Mayor, the Chief Constable has been instructed to ensure that litterbugs are arrested and charged under the bylaws. The fine for littering, he revealed, is $25,000 with a possible jail term.“This exercise has started and we are not going to tell anybody where we are going to operate from. I don’t even want to know but the Chief Constable has his instructions and assured me that he has deployed additional staff. We are even going to use the trainees in the training centre to supplement the numbers,China Jerseys Online,” Mayor Green added.As part of the amplified campaign by the Municipality to address the problem of littering in the city, 21 persons were taken to court for callous disposal of waste, as at the end of May.Public Relations Officer, Royston King had revealed that of the 21 persons, 17 were fined $10,000 or an alternative of 21 days in prison while one was fined $15,000 or an alternative of six weeks in prisons. Two other persons, according to him, were fined $7,500 or an alternative of 20 days in prison.According to King, the M&CC is vigorously pursuing its anti-litter programme in certain sections of the city. This effort, he noted, is aimed at ridding the city of a wanton disposal problem that has become overwhelming.“The Council time and again has asked citizens to act responsibility through motivational messages in the print and electronic media. However, some citizens are disregarding the law with impunity.” As a result, King said that the Council is left with no choice but to enforce the law.The Council, according to King, cannot accept citizens littering the drains and canals. Littering, he said, is an economic, environmental and social burden. “When the environment is polluted and defaced with litter, it affects our ability to promote Georgetown as a tourist destination.”This problem, he said, costs the Municipality financially since additional monies have to be expended to clean drains and canals that were already cleaned. This results in diverting much needed finances from other critical areas, King added. He noted that littering the thoroughfares contributes to blocked drains and canals which lead to mosquito breeding and the increase in mosquito borne diseases. “The way some citizens treat with the environment would have serious consequences on the health of our city…” As a result, King said that the Council is urging citizens to dispose their garbage in an environmentally friendly manner even as efforts are sustained to deal with litterbugs in the city.The campaign against litterbugs was intensified in April and comes in wake of observations that indiscriminate dumping has done nothing to help the integrity of the city’s drainage system, following rainfall during that period. “We have observed that water is being left on the land after the rainfalls and this we know is primarily because of the indiscriminate dumping of refuge by persons in the city, be it residents or just visitors,” said Superintendent of Enforcement, Stephen Bailey.As such, he noted that the Constabulary is continually forced to enforce the bylaws of the city as it relates to littering. “If you just walk outside you would see the amount of garbage because of the behaviour of the people in the city.”The information coming from the relevant section is that the garbage and other stuff that are thrown into the system are clogging up the kokers and the sluices and this would usually prevent the water from draining off the land. “So we have decided to up the ante…”In doing so, Bailey said that the Constabulary is looking and dealing with littering in its entirety whether it is the callous disposal of a cigarette butt or a truck load of garbage. |
