NSWMA Recruits 100 More Enforcement Officers to Tackle Illegal Dumping

Executive Director of the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA), Audley Gordon, says the agency is recruiting over 100 additional enforcement officers to strengthen its response to illegal dumping.

In an interview with journalists during a recent clean-up of the garbage holding area in Norwood, St. James, Mr. Gordon informed that the recruitment exercise forms part of the NSWMA’s drive to establish a more robust Enforcement and Compliance Unit, which he said, will have a greater presence across the island next year.

He said that the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) will lead the administration of the entrance examinations and provide training for the new recruits. The training will begin during the first week of November at the National Police College of Jamaica’s (NPCJ) Camp Verley Training Campus in St. Catherine.

Mr. Gordon said that boosting the enforcement cadre will enable the agency to intensify its operations in communities still dealing with illegal dumping.

“We are building an enforcement unit that will be serious, that will be decisive because while we court the better behaviour, while we beg and beseech, there will come a time when we’re going to have to just enforce the law [to its fullest extent],” he said.

Mr. Gordon reiterated his call for citizens to take responsibility for their waste and ensure that proper disposal is done.

Persons with bulky materials such as mattresses, refrigerators and other household waste are being encouraged to contact the NSWMA to arrange for the disposal of these items.

“[Not] because you see an open lot or a corner that is secluded [means] you can just dispose of what you don’t need anymore. We don’t believe this is how we should operate,” Mr. Gordon said.