Owners Of Garages in Portland Urged to Be Mindful of Public’s Respiratory Health

Chief Public Health Inspector for Portland, Lorenzo Hume, is appealing to Automotive site owners, particularly garages and facilities where spraying takes place, to be careful not to put the public’s respiratory health at risk.

Speaking at the monthly meeting of the Portland Municipal Corporation on March 12, Mr. Hume said these facilities “are a significant problem to persons with respiratory illness that are close by”.

He reported that an auto mechanic at a work site in the parish was fined $50,000 by the Court, under Sections 3 and 10 of the Public Health (Nuisance) Regulations.

“We will continue, going forward, to take action against automotive sites to ensure that we protect persons with respiratory illness,” Mr. Hume said.

He also noted that issues are being found with construction work sites, pointing to the need for adequate personal protective equipment, such as for ear protection and respiratory protection, for workers who are exposed to long hours of equipment use.

In the meantime, the Chief Public Health Inspector reported that Portland’s certification level for tourist establishments is currently at 94 per cent.

“We are just one percentage point below the target. We are happy at this time because the previous two months we were at 63 and 76, so you can see we have gradually increased over the last three months,” Mr. Hume said.