North Gully Maintenance Programme gets under way

Western Bureau:

The St James Parish Council and the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA) have joined forces in an ambitious plan to get residents of North Gully and Green Pond in St James to buy into and be partners in the multifaceted North Gully Maintenance Programme.

The North Gully Maintenance Programme, aimed at improving the quality of life in the communities, focuses on residents to exercise proper waste-disposal practices.

The programme, which commenced on February 18, 2013, in the William Street area in downtown Montego Bay, is also seen as a comprehensive way to encourage good habits and to enhance the aesthetics of the area, which has spawned serious health concerns in the past.

In addition to addressing health and aesthetics, the programme has created employment for four persons, who are being paid to maintain that section of the gully.

"The citizens and residents of the parish have to be sensitised about proper waste management," said Suzette Brown, the councillor for the Montego Bay South Division. "We have decided to start here, practically in the centre of the town, where unfortunately, most of the waste coming from other areas is deposited."

According to Brown, the programme is integral both in terms of addressing the maintenance need as well as in terms of getting the residents to buy into its sustenance. She noted further that plans were in place for the expansion of the North Gully Maintenance Programme to include the communities of Canterbury, Albion, Salt Spring Road, and Green Pond.

GRAVE CONCERNS

Brown also expressed grave concerns about the unhealthy practice of disposing faecal matter in the channel, which carries waste water from the Green Pond area into the Montego Bay Harbour.

"I am very concerned about the health of persons living in these communities that line the North Gully," said Brown. "I have asked for the assistance of the Social Development Commission (SDC), which is currently developing a programme that will allow the St James Parish Council to seek funding for the creation of sanitary conveniences in affected communities."

Eifert Daley, the NSWMA regional manager, concurred with Brown with regard to her concerns for the persons living along the gully's banks. However, he was optimistic that the expansion of the programme would result in cleaner surroundings.

"I want to see the programme spread all the way to the Green Pond community, even before the commencement of the rainy season," said Daley. "I am hopeful that all the other communities will be brought on-board and that the necessary funding will be in place to ensure its spread to critical points along the system."

The salaries of the four persons now employed on the North Gully Maintenance Programme are being paid by the NSWMA and from the councillor's Parochial Revenue Fund.

As part of its mandate, the North Gully Maintenance Programme will also address proper waste management and disposal, the placement of skips and receptacles in communities, and the employment of individuals from within the affected areas to oversee the day-to-day maintenance of the gully.