Residents Cry Foul as Company Disposes of Waste
A number of residents along the Philip Goldson Highway near mile fifteen, just after the Burrell Boom cut off, are expressing concerns over what they say is a health hazard in the area. They have been exposed to smoke and the chemicals from a nearby property where various items are being disposed of. Ray Cattouse says that he has been trying to contact the Department of Environment about the incident, but there has been no response. Today, the police were called in. News Five’s Duane Moody went looking for answers and files this report.
Duane Moody, Reporting
Even as work was being done at a private property belonging to the Canul family on the Philip Goldson Highway, this afternoon, there was a high smell of smoke and chemicals that permeated the air. Resident Ray Cattouse says that this has been ongoing for almost two years and alleges that plastics are being burnt inside a huge pit at the rear of the property, located adjacent to his. Today, Cattouse reached out to the police who intervened.
Ray Cattouse
Ray Cattouse, Resident
“It’s been a while now that my neighbour is burning those plastic bottles or putting chemicals or some stuff on the plastic bottles and burning it and I think it is a hazard to the environment and the people who live around here; the smoke noh. They have a canal or a trench that they also dig runs off into a canal that I also have to drain property that they drain all their waste into my canal. And the smoke is a real bother to me and the people who live around here. And every time I ask them about what’s going on with it, they say they only di burn lee woodlice. Well today, I managed to get the police to come out and the police told them that they had to shut it down and out the smoke right now.”
The operation is undertaken by Green Wave Industries. The company was specifically developed to dispose of and neutralize hazardous waste, such as petroleum products, sludge, asbestos and chemicals. While the company has been in existence for seven years, recently it began disposing of carbonated beverages. Owner Jose Canul says that they are operating with a license from the Department of Environment.
Jose Canul, Manager/Owner, Green Wave Industries
“As part of the Green Wave Industries, we also do a lot of recycling. We recycle styrofoams, cardboards, plastics, etc. But we don’t burn these things; these are money. We can’t afford to be burning money. We have several powders there on site—I don’t know if you had a privilege to see them—but in some cases, these are bentonite powder; these are not chemicals. These are used to neutralize carbonated beverages or other chemicals or other chemicals as may be needed. That’s what we have; that’s the only thing we have.”
Duane Moody
“So it is these carbonated beverages that are being burnt there right now?”
Jose Canul
Jose Canul
“No we are not burning those. What happened is that we had a huge woodlice infestation; a huge one. The building in front, if you look in the front that whole roof and house in the back—we had two wooden houses in the back that were infested—and we sprayed those entire buildings. But apparently the chemical that we used, which is like Malathion—not unlike the ones sprayed for mosquitoes, the same thing—it apparently wasn’t effective so we decided to put everything in the hole in the back and burn them. My only thing that I can tell you and if it did affect them, I have to apologise for that on behalf of Green Wave, is that maybe the chemicals that we sprayed was still in that wood, was saturated. And when that burn as a lump it created an irritating effect. But we have no chemicals at all to burn there. And if we were to burn diesel or petroleum product, it would not have that sort of effect.”
Cattouse says that he is concerned about the environmental impact and the possible public health hazard.
Ray Cattouse
“It’s ten times worse than this when the burning. You cannot even stand here because of the stench of the smoke and the stench of the chemical from the plastic or I don’t know.”
Duane Moody
“Is it possible that this could be affecting people because when inhaled continuously and all of that, it could affect you?”
Ray Cattouse
“That is what I don’t know. And that is why I want the relevant authorities to come out and check this thing out so that I can live in peace so that I can know that what my neighbour is doing over there is not affecting the rest of neighbours plus me because especially my whole family lives here.”
Jose Canul
“We operate under a license from D.O.E. who checks us every quarter to ensure that we maintain our strict guidelines in terms of the area where we have our petroleum products stored, how we dispose of it, what we use to neutralize it and these types of things.”
Duane Moody for News Five.
