Arthur Hall, Senior Staff Reporter

Illegal dumps offering heavily discounted rates are flourishing around the Riverton landfill and some top companies in the Corporate Area are keeping them alive.

Commercial waste from some of the island's top companies is ending up at a number of these illegal dumps.

A Sunday Gleaner probe has determined that some private garbage-disposal entities, which collect commercial waste, are taking the cheap route by emptying rubbish at the illegal dumps instead of going to the official landfill operated by the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA).

"When Solid Waste a charge $500 fi go pon di landfill, di illegal dump dem will take $200, $300, or anything," one man explained.

The truck drivers save a dollar but create a multimillion-dollar problem, which affects residents of communities close to the landfill, as the operators of the illegal dumps can only dispose of the rubbish by burning it.

This creates an almost-nightly smoke nuisance for people living near the landfill that is often unfairly blamed on the NSWMA.

At least three illegal dumps

The Sunday Gleaner probe located at least three illegal dumps operating close to the landfill.

"Yow, boss. Leave that alone. A gunman thing that," one source told The Sunday Gleaner, even as he helped to point out the illegal dumps.

According to the source, one of the dumps, operated on the bank of the Sandy Gully, is a regular site for operators of private trucks which collect garbage from some of the biggest companies in the Corporate Area.

Another illegal dump, operated metres from the landfill, had a chain across the gate where men collect money from truck drivers who want to avoid going to the official dump.

"The issue of the illegal dumps is one that I struggled with," said Joan Gordon-Webley, former head of the NSWMA.

"It stems from a number of reasons, including persons operating near the landfill who commandeer the trucks and dump the rubbish to search for tyres and scrap metals. The tyres are then burnt for the copper that is inside," Gordon-Webley explained.

She charged that some truck operators use the illegal dumps to avoid paying the $500 administrative fee to access the landfill.

According to Gordon-Webley, even in cases where established companies purchase the $500 pass from the NSWMA to take their garbage to the landfill, some drivers leave the truckloads of rubbish at the illegal dumps and sell the tickets.

"Boss, just tek mi number and call mi when you coming. All you have to do is give mi a thing and mi will take any number of loads (of garbage) you have," one operator of an illegal dump told The Sunday Gleaner team.

He was responding to our request to dispose of some garbage without going through the formal system.

NSWMA board to conduct probe

The issue has attracted the attention of Minister of Local Government Noel Arscott, who has instructed the recently appointed board of the NSWMA to investigate the matter and indicate the measures to be taken to cauterise it.

"I asked that the investigation not be limited to the Riverton site, but that the board look into unlicensed solid-waste disposal activities across the island.

"I have requested that the board act within the confines of the law, utilising the provisions under the National Solid Waste Management Act in prosecuting offenders," added Arscott.

Section 23 of the National Solid Waste Management Act stipulates that "a licence is required for persons who operate or propose to operate waste-disposal sites, provide or propose to provide waste collection or transfer, or otherwise manage solid waste".

Section 45 of the act prescribes that persons who break the rules "are liable on summary conviction before a resident magistrate to a fine not exceeding $1 million or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding nine months or to both fine and imprisonment".

According to Arscott, "An inter-agency approach will be utilised as the (NSWMA) board will be working with the Public Health Department and the National Environment (and Planning) Agency, and I am expecting an update within 30 days."

arthur.hall @gleanerjm.com