Commercial building plans must include grease traps, says MoBay mayor
Published:Monday | January 13, 2025 | 12:06 AMChristopher Thomas/Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
Montego Bay Mayor Richard Vernon, who is also chairman of the St James Municipal Corporation (StJMC), says that, going forward, all construction approvals for commercial buildings must include the creation of grease traps to catch discarded food waste.
Vernon, who was speaking at Thursday’s monthly meeting of the StJMC, said the National Water Commission (NWC) recently expressed concern to him about restaurant waste entering their piping system.
“We are doing some infrastructure upgrades in the Lightbody Avenue and Fish Lane area in Montego Bay, changing out the sewage system there, and it has impacted a section of Barnett Street, creating a sink in the vicinity of the Courts store,” said Vernon. “When I had dialogue with the NWC, they were concerned that too much waste from restaurants is entering their system … it creates a build-up in that system, and then causes spillback of the waste, which then runs on the roadway.
“I understand that a safe food programme is being looked at or has started, to ensure that all restaurants are compliant with the requirement for the grease traps. I believe we should take it a little bit further where, in the submissions for these commercial buildings, whether or not you tell us you are going to allow restaurants to operate there, you must have the grease trap.
“It is costing us significantly in the long run, so this is something that we are willing to adopt in our planning department as a part of the condition of approval for building construction.”
Vernon is urging the St James Health Department to collaborate with the StJMC in ensuring that approval of any building plans include verification that such plans include grease traps within their outline.
“This is a part you need to review as the public health department, so when you get the building plan from us, ensure that you are satisfied that the requisite grease trap is in place or will be in place based on the plan, to abate that situation. We are committed to ensuring that we play our part, but we need your continued support to ensure that that part is properly monitored, because we do not want to approve any commercial development that will be rented, especially to shops and other operations, and they do not have grease traps,” said Vernon.
In responding to Vernon, Sherika Lewis, the St James Health Department’s acting chief public health inspector, acknowledged that her organisation needs to pay more attention to the issue of grease trap maintenance by food establishments.
“The grease traps form a part of the sewage and waste water monitoring that we do. I know that once there is no overflow, where any nuisance is being created by the lack of a grease trap or proper wastewater disposal system, we do not pay much attention to that part of it,” said Lewis. “But since the issue has been coming up, we will work together with the StJMC’s building department here to ensure that persons put in grease traps. The maintenance of the grease traps is critical because a nuisance will be created once they are not maintained.”
The St James Health Department previously sought to address concerns about the contribution of food waste, including grease and oil from food establishments, to sewage overflows in the Montego Bay business district in October 2021.
Concerns were also raised that improperly disposed food grease may have helped to cause a buildup of waste in the city’s drainage system, leading to flooding in sections of the western city in November that year.