Rubbish falling from government trucks

| 05/07/2016

This morning, at about 8:30am, I was driving near the airport behind one of those big green open-top trucks with a Cayman Islands Government logo on the side. The truck was full to the brim and as it went around the airport by the cricket oval, I was distressed to see bits of rubbish being blown off onto the road.

Why was there no cover on the truck to prevent this from happening as what is the point of carting away rubbish if you are littering as you drive?


Auntie’s answer: You are absolutely right: it makes no sense to be transporting a bunch of rubbish to be dumped somewhere while spreading bits of it all over town. I brought your question to the Department of Environmental Health (DEH) to find out what was going on.

An official at the department said they were working to correct several issues “to improve the overall efficiencies and to ensure that all of our operations are in compliance”.

Towards that end, you will be glad to know that they are working right now to have all commercial containers and open trucks properly covered during the transportation of waste materials to prevent littering. The department has apparently been working on this problem for a while and expects everything to be covered within another two to three months. I can’t say why this issue wasn’t dealt with previously since rubbish loaded in open-top trucks was simply littering waiting to happen.

At the same time, the official said that the DEH is asking the public to make sure loads are secured when moving waste or other loose materials to keep all those things from accidentally flying off vehicles.

He added that the DEH will be launching a public-education campaign to prevent littering from various sources. I certainly support that idea, but am not looking forward to winding up behind another self-littering truck any time over the next few months until all the covers are in place.

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Category: Ask Auntie

Comments (1)

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  1. Anonymous says:

    So they are “working”” right now? “… been working on this problem for a while and expects everything to be covered within another two to three months.. Is it a joke or insult to the reader’s intelligence? What did they do before?