Over 700 derelict vehicles have been collected by the Central Water and Sewerage authority (CWSA) since 2017. This is according to the CWSA’s Solid Waste Manager Winsbert Quow, who made the disclosure during his appearance on the Issues at Hand program.
Mr. Quow during the interview explained the importance of the removal of these derelict vehicles, as well as their negative impact.
“Derelict vehicles cause a problem for the environment. They are public health hazards. They are harborage for rats, roaches. They have a health and safety issue as well, you know, you have these rusty derelicts in some communities that can cause harm to our vulnerable populace, especially the children. They are a road safety problem and they also contribute to disaster vulnerability in that, in the event of a storm event. These lightweight vehicles on the road can become missiles, damage property and life and they can block drains and so forth as well. And finally, they also detract from the aesthetics of the country, which negatively impacts our tourism product” Quow said.
Mr. Quow then goes on to discuss what takes place after the vehicles have been collected by the CWSA.
“We take them to our Diamond landfill currently; and we invested in a compactor unit, where we compact them into cubes, three by three cubes” he said.
Mr. Quow said the compacting program began in 2021, and is still in the process of being set up, with the hope being to expand to further recycling.
“We want to put in a scale unit, where we would be able to weigh those compacted vehicles and have them shipped out through private sector connections to send overseas for recycling” he said.
The CWSA’s Solid Waste Manager said the reason for this move is preserve space at the Diamond landfill. According to Mr. Quow, the Diamond landfill was commissioned in 2002 and was expected to be in service for 20 years, but thanks to programs carried out by the CWSA that capacity of the landfill has not being exceeded.
