Garbage seems to be everywhere – region, town, neighbourhood and village. It is alarming that the People’s Progressive Party administration has done so little for so long to resolve the crisis. Guyana’s Constitution is unambiguous. It mandates that “The State shall protect the environment, for the benefit of present and future generations, through reasonable legislative and other measures designed to prevent pollution and ecological degradation…”
The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals emphasise, also, that managing garbage is essential to ensuring clean water and sanitation, creating sustainable cities and inclusive communities; demonstrating sustainable consumption and production patterns, mitigating climate change and protecting life on land.
Former President David Granger, speaking on the programme – The Public Interest – reminded that a former PPP Minister, when asked if the Central Government preferred to spend millions on a health crisis in Georgetown rather than to assist the City Council, responded calmly: “Well, if there is a health crisis in the city I’ll be glad because it’ll remove the city council. They’ll be responsible for it.” These words express the essence of the ‘Kellawan effect’ which defines the PPP’s approach to the garbage crisis today after 28 years in office since 1992. Hence, unhealthy, unsightly and unpleasant heaps of garbage continue to encumber roadsides and sidewalks and disfigure the landscape.
Mismanaged garbage poses long-term economic distress, environmental degradation and diseases which can affect present and future generations. It causes air, soil and water contamination and harms ecosystems, fisheries, human settlements, marine habitats and wildlife. Leachate from landfills can contaminate groundwater, posing risks to drinking-water sources.
Congestion of canals and waterways can intensify flooding and create breeding grounds for pests and vectors and heighten the risk of vector-borne diseases such as filaria, malaria and dengue. Pollutants in garbage can contaminate soil, impacting agriculture and animal health. The generation of methane in landfills – a potent greenhouse gas – aggravates climate change and inhibits resource recovery and recycling.
Mr. Granger explained that garbage mismanagement is the result of indecisive and ineffective governmental policy; inadequate collection and disposal; importation of non-bio-degradable products (eg, used tyres) which contribute to the volume of garbage; insufficient garbage collection resources and equipment and infrastructural deficiencies. The Green State Development Strategy promulgated by the APNU+AFC administration included policies to encourage safe solid waste disposal and to minimize waste proliferation.
The PPP administration needs to introduce a comprehensive, countrywide solid waste management system that encourages safe and efficient garbage disposal, minimizes waste, promotes recycling and improves collection and disposal methods. It can start by establishing a National Solid Waste Authority – similar to the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority − to reduce, reuse and recycle garbage.
Such an Authority should mandate the selective sorting of reusable waste in households and business places and utilize vegetable waste generated every day in farms, municipal markets, restaurants and the hospitality industry. The authority should incentivise a countrywide regime to reduce, reuse and recycle garbage and introduce composting measures to diminish the waste sent to landfills; invest in efficient garbage collection, transportation and processing; increase the number of functional landfills; implement public education programmes about sustainable waste disposal; innovate management techniques and technologies and invoke the law to eliminate lawless littering and reckless dumping.
The former president emphasized that the garbage crisis can be resolved. However, it has been exacerbated by the persistence of the ‘Kellawan effect’ on the PPP’s policy which results in underfunded, unregulated, unsatisfactory measures and a lack of enforcement and public education. The PPPC needs to fulfil its constitutional obligation in order “to prevent pollution and ecological degradation…” and to ensure a good life for everyone. 󠄀