BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - WASTE management in St. Kitts got a shot in the arm yesterday (June 18) as the leading disposal company received two newly-commissioned trucks.
The Solid Waste Management Corporation (SWMC) received the garbage trucks as part of a combined effort by the Republic of China on Taiwan and the Government of St. Kitts-Nevis to keep the country “clean and beautiful”.
The General Manager of the SWMC, Alphonso Bridgewater, said that the donation of the trucks was not necessarily a defining moment for the SWMC like the opening of the sanitary landfill was, but it was most certainly a “refining moment”.
“Taiwan came to us in our time of need,” he stated. “Ambassador [Rong-chuan] Wu had his ear to the ground and made the approach to help us fund a new truck.”
Following Taiwan’s decision to graciously purchase the nearly EC$500 000 sanitation vehicle, Bridgewater joked that the St. Kitts-Nevis Ministry of Finance decided to “make it a two-for-one deal” and purchase a second truck.
Ambassador Wu said that the decision to purchase the truck for St. Kitts was an easy one for his government, because “we want to assist our friends in St. Kitts-Nevis whenever there is a crisis”.
Bridgewater affirmed that St. Kitts was indeed facing a crisis last July when two of the long-running garbage trucks of the SWMC broke down and waste around the island began to pile up.
“We were at a crisis point then, but we are only in containment mode right now. What we really need to have is eight trucks servicing the nation, because even machines need a time to rest,” the General Manager said.
Following the brief ceremony, the two new trucks, which are top-of-the-line and have many automated features, were made ready for service with a ribbon cutting by Ambassador Wu and the Minister with responsibility for Solid Waste Management, the Hon. Rupert Herbert.
While the ceremony was largely used to unveil the new trucks, time was also set aside to honour the hardworking men and women of the SWMC who are often underappreciated in their efforts to keep the nation clean.
A moment of silence was observed to remember all of the SWMC workers who had passed away in the past year, many of whom had given decades of their lives to the vital public service.
Herbert said that the dramatic rise in housing in recent years has caused challenges for the SWMC, which the workers have often met without asking for gratitude of any kid. He added that rise in households around the island means a rise in waste produced, and the general public must now do their part to help the corporation carry out their business efficiently.
“The irresponsibility of the general public has caused some of these challenges, and I say this because I love St. Kitts,” the Minister stated. “All of our people must be orderly and do their best to assist the SWMC.”
The public was also asked to be vigilant regarding the operation of the new trucks.
“Your tax dollars paid for this service, so you should be interested,” Bridgewater said. “If you see these new trucks being mistreated, call us and let us know. They are here for all of us.”
