Hope Zoo chokes amid rising illegal landfill fires
Management calls for action to protect staff, animals, nearby communities
Published:Friday | October 18, 2024 | 12:05 AMSashana Small/Staff Reporter
Frequent fires at an unregulated landfill in the Land Lease community in St Andrew have been causing distress for the management of the nearby Hope Zoo, who are anxious about the potential health risks to its staff and animals at the facility.
The fires, which the zoo’s management said they have been enduring for the past three years, have been more incessant over recent months, with one being lit at least three times per week.
A representative from the Hope Zoo, who requested anonymity, told The Gleaner that despite reporting the matter to the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA) multiple times, no effort has been made by the state agency to address it.
“It is disappointing … . Apart from our staff and animals, this area [at the zoo] is a big hotspot for kids,” the representative said. “We hoped that there would be quicker action or some type of regulation that could [be enforced] to prohibit this, not to mention that it is terrible for the environment in general,” he added.
Over the weekend, the representative said he had to call the Jamaica Fire Brigade on three consecutive days as the smoke from the fire made the atmosphere at the zoo feel like “walking through a hazy cloud”. He is deeply concerned about the long-term respiratory issues that could emerge.
Terrestrial biologist and wildlife expert Damion Whyte is equally perturbed.
“Some of these animals cannot move, and they need good conditions to survive. So it’s very unpleasant for them, so it depends on what is being burned at the dump. In terms of if it’s plastic, you’ll have some other chemicals in it ... . It’ll have an impact on the animals there and on the staff there as well as other community members,” he told The Gleaner.
THREAT TO HUMANS
The zoo’s representative said further tests would need to be done to determine if any animals have fallen ill or died as a result of any toxins from the smoke.
The fires have also been a nuisance to residents in the nearby Hope Pastures and could also have an effect on students at the nearby University of Technology, Jamaica and the Papine High School as well, the zoo representative noted.
He called on the NSWMA to take decisive action to end the practice.
Efforts by The Gleaner to get a response from the NSWMA on what steps it is taking to address the situation were unsuccessful as messages and calls to Executive Director Audley Gordon were unanswered up to press time last night. But two months ago, he told THE STAR that he was aware of the illegal landfill and would be handling the issue.
Local Government and Community Development Minister Desmond McKenzie earlier this year signalled the Government’s intention to introduce legislation to impose stiffer penalties for improper waste disposal. He indicated that such legislation would follow an intensive public education campaign.
“When the new legislation comes, the country will be aware because we are going to be taking the programme right across the country into various community forums saying, ‘these are the things that will happen’ so that the country is in a position to digest [them],” he said at the time.