Prevention is better than cure in COVID fight
Dust nuisance, ravaged farmlands draw outcry
PRIME MINISTER Andrew Holness is quite accurate in the criticism of the First-World donors who have provided paltry sums to Caribbean countries in the fight against COVID-19.
To effectively change the behaviour of and prepare our population for the introduction of a new vaccine requires huge capital investment. Sadly, our Government has a mere shoestring budget and is left with a thin straw basket to carry the watery trouble of pandemics and epidemics.
This Government is, however, best equipped to convince Jamaicans to place their hearts and hands in the right place. No doubt, the campaigns to effect the containment of the COVID-19 pandemic and, eventually, crime epidemics will be successful.
The print media should be used effectively to reach the masses. Newspapers can be reused as posters at public places, as there is still limited Internet connectivity. A thrust by the private sector in creating sponsored handwashing stations would be a good idea.
The wider population should be encouraged to learn CPR and have a basic first-aid kit. Check in with your doctor in person or virtually, depending on the services provided.
The movement towards shoecleansing stations, as seen at HalfWay Tree Road (near the location of the former Daily News) is an important initiative, too.
Wearing of masks and handwashing still deter COVID-19 infection. In short, prevention is better than cure. The life you save will be at least your own.
Let us all continue the fight for the best life outcomes.
Ul JEM jem.ul@yahoo.com
DALEY’S GROVE, MANCHESTER:
TWO YEARS ago when 59-yearold Warren Swaby received news that a bauxite company would be mining near his home, he knew that things would never be the same.
However, he was not prepared for the debilitating effects that have persisted.
Swaby laments losing thousands of dollars from his farm in Daley’s Grove and now contends with an inability to continue large-scale cultivation because of the deterioration of arable lands.
He farms on lands owned by bauxite interests, which were originally purchased from residents. He is among many ruing that trade as a bad bargain.
The farmer, who said he supplied yams to the export market in the past, claims that he and his brother lost approximately 2,000 yam hills when lands were cleared for mining.
“When the hill is planted. we put two and three (yam) head in it, so you can easily pick up 30lb of yam out of the one hill ... . ”
With the crop revenue estimated at J$1 million, Swaby said he only received 12 per cent of the value in compensation. There was a crop yield of around 30lb per yam hill, he said.
One hill of yam can cost roughly $500, Swaby said. All told, he pocketed $120,000.
“... If they should pay us according to rate, they would have to pay us by the hill for all of what was there ... ,” said Swaby. “If they had paid at the market value, I would have been able to purchase items [for replanting].”
Swaby said that bauxite is to blame for his respiratory challenges and significant damage to his house. Dust nuisance inflames his sinuses, forcing him to buy over-the-counter and prescription medication. When heavy machinery does excavation, he reports almost suffocating, even when he locks himself inside his house.
Medication and a trip to the doctor could cost him approximately J$8,000.
“Sometime when [my sinus] is triggered, the over-the-counter medication cannot help. You have to get antibiotics,” he told
The Gleaner.
The Jamaica Bauxite Institute (JBI), which has governance oversight of the industry, is responsible for monitoring the aluminium sector and implementing community- development programmes in conjunction with mining interests.
The JBI has not answered requests for comment solicited weeks ago.
Bauxite dust is a source of grievance across bauxite communities in central and western Jamaica. Clothes and furniture become reddened with the plague.
CHUMP CHANGE
Swaby revealed that he received compensation of more than $200,000 for dust nuisance. Now he views that as chump change compared to his suffering.
He blames bauxite dust as the source of deterioration of his roof. His grilles are suffering the same fate.
The farmer has replaced a section of his roof but still needs at least 30 sheets of zinc to complete the reno.
“The dust is murdering us even when they stop mine. Anytime the truck pass on the haulage road, the dust still coming over here ... . It’s bad, man!
Swaby strongly believes that the
Jamaican Government has not been proactive in preserving the welfare of rural folk. Systems of review were implemented years ago, but Swaby and other residents of Manchester report that there appears to be no effective checks and balances on mining companies.
He argues that mining should not take place within the proximity of homes. That red line should be more than 100 feet away, he said.
“Anytime you see them reclaim this land, you must come back and see,” said Swaby. “You won’t see a level land right across. Jamaica is hill and gully ride.”
Chairman of the Jamaica Environment Trust (JET), Diana McCaulay, said the main finding of the organisation’s recent study on the bauxite-alumina industry revealed how little effort has been made to collect information on the effects on communities.
“They (Government) have not tried to find out how public health, crops, livelihood have been affected by bauxite. We couldn’t find out how many people have been displaced, how small farming has been affected ... . We could not get the information to verify the rehabilitation that the Jamaica Bauxite Institute (JBI) points to ... . ”
McCaulay said JET is hoping to arouse interest in the public and private sector and cause the Government to pay keen attention to the impact of bauxite mining.
FUNERAL DIRECTORS came in for sharp criticism at last Thursday’s meeting of the St Catherine Municipal Corporation as the health authorities accused them of being negligent in the fight against COVID-19.
St Catherine Chief Public Health Inspector Grayson Hutchinson called for more vigilance in tackling the virus as the island experiences a surge in cases, which has also been taking a toll on the parish.
“We have noticed that persons are using funeral parlours to convene funerals. We are aware that these spaces are small. Therefore, the virus will spread rapidly, so we are just asking that we all observe the protocol,” Hutchinson appealed.
He called on funeral directors to ensure that COVID19 protocols are observed even as people mourn their loved ones.
“Just remember that it was reported that our first case of COVID-19 was said to have started at a funeral service. Therefore, it means we must be careful not to cause more funerals. It’s a serious pandemic,” the chief public health inspector said, adding that the restrictions on the number of mourners allowed at funerals were also being violated.
THREAT TO SECTOR
Reacting Friday to the revelation by the chief public health inspector, Telbert Roberts, a senior director of Roberts Funeral Home in Linstead, St Catherine, told The Gleaner that breaches of COVID-19 regulations could threaten the sector.
“If the system says 10 persons, then I can’t see how 11 must come, let alone dozens of persons as has been reported. This is a serious breach, which can lead to a shutdown of the industry,” Roberts said.
He stressed that it will take hard work and dedication to fight the pandemic.
“The practice must not be encouraged. In fact, it must be addressed. The actions can only be seen as you are paying me to kill me as the virus can kill. There needs to be strict regulations and accountability for funeral homes, so it means that the Government needs to regulate and operators will have comply,” said Roberts, the public relations officer for the Jamaica Association of Certified Embalmers and Funeral Home Directors.
As at Tuesday, February 10, St Catherine had recorded 3,739 cases of the virus since March 2020. Of this number, Hutchinson said there are 386 active cases.
“What it means is that there are 386 positive cases in St Catherine within the last 14 days, and we must take it very seriously. What we find is that persons are not doing all they should to protect themselves and that must change to control the spread,” he told councillors.
Hutchinson pointed to the Old Capital (Spanish Town proper) and Old Harbour Road as areas of concern which will be given renewed attention.
The councillors were called upon to help educate their constituents about the serious nature of the pandemic.
VERE TECHNICAL High School in Clarendon benefited from a US$12,000 boost to the institution’s poultry project. The donation, courtesy of the Vere Technical High Global Alumni, was handed over to the principal last Thursday. The poultry project has two chicken houses, rearing over 1,000 chickens every six weeks to supply the school’s canteen and external markets.
Principal Antoinette BantonEllis, expressing gratitude for the donation, said agriculture is an integral part of the school’s curriculum.
“We want to make sure our farm is a top-of-the-line farm and that our students will have that different experience, so when they go out there in the world of work, they are definitely able to hold their own because of the experience they would have received,” she said.
Alongside chicken, the school’s farm supplies markets, including restaurants, with pig meat and vegetables.
With various sectors facing a fallout due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Banton-Ellis told The Gleaner that the school’s agribusiness saw a significant decline in sales.
“Before COVID we had quite a good market outside of the institution, so we had quite a bit of restaurants and local shops buying from us, [and] persons coming from all over to buy live pigs from us, but COVID has
affected us like everybody else ... we have been hit pretty hard,” she said, adding that the school’s storage facility has reduced the chances of meat spoilage.
When The Gleaner visited the school’s farm, students were busy
tending to chickens as a part of their school-based assessment. They shared that they carry out experiments with two sets of chickens to determine what feed and supplements yield a better crop. The principal said her students are enthused about farming.
“Farming is important and we will be self-sufficient; and we want children to actually love the idea of being a provider for the country. We want them to go back to farming to feed your own family ... your own community,” said Banton-Ellis.
BEST REVENUE OPTION
Keith Simpson, member of the Global Alumni, shared that the poultry project is one of many in the pipeline that the newly founded Global Alumni Association is undertaking. “The chicken project is what we felt had the best chance of getting revenue that can be used for some of the other projects the school has,” he said.
Carlton Robinson of the 1975 graduating class shared that a technology improvement project, which will see the addition of 25 computers to the school’s computer lab, is geared to be completed by December this year.
Members of the Global Alumni Association are hoping that other past students will join the initiative.