Minister Reiterates Call For Safe Waste Disposal
The Minister of Public Works Trevor Moniz has reiterated his call for the public to properly dispose of waste materials, particularly hazardous materials, following another incident in which a garbage collection worker was sprayed with Muriatic Acid while in the course of working.
The incident occurred around 1.30 pm on Friday afternoon in St. David’s when the worker was exposed to fumes after a container of Muriatic Acid placed in the regular garbage by a resident erupted while being compacted which exposed him to the extremely strong fumes. He was first treated by the Bermuda Fire Service, acting as first responders, and then transported to King Edward VII Memorial Hospital and treated for contact to exposure to the substance. While his condition could not be confirmed, he is expected to make a full recovery.
The Minister expressed his disappointment that the injured worker was exposed to acid only a week after two garbage collection workers were splashed with Muriatic Acid that was put out for collection in a regular garbage bag. The Minister said this indicated residents were being careless in disposing of their hazardous waste materials.
The Minister strongly encouraged residents to not place hazardous substances, including faeces, into their garbage, and residents are advised to call 278-.0560 if they are not sure what waste items should be disposed of their garbage.
Residents are also advised to take advantage of the Special Waste Days held during the year. The 2013 Special Waste Days are on May 17th and 18th, and November 1st and 2nd at the Tynes Bay Waste to Energy Facility on Palmetto Road, Devonshire.
The following items, if placed into regular garbage can present a health risk for Bermuda’s environment and residents. If disposed of correctly these items are sent overseas for recycling, benefiting all of us in Bermuda by keeping us safe from potential environmental hazards, and benefiting our planet by reusing or recycling the end product.
- Compact fluorescent bulbs or CFLs
- Fluorescent tubes
- Household batteries
- Vehicle batteries
- PVC pipes
- Used motor oils
- Used paint cans
- Pesticides
- Acids
- Caustics
- Pool cleaners
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Category: All, Environment, News, Politics
And while we’re at it , can I offer another timely reminder ?
Garbage goes out for collection on THE MORNING of collection day at ‘your’ gate.
Not the day before when the winds are going to go up to gale force overnight.
And not after you’ve missed the collection time in your neighbourhood then dumping it at someone else’s gate who’s already been collected .
What exactly is Muriatic Acid? What product that is being disposed can possibly contain this acid? It is more than coincidental that this has happened twice in less than 10 days which leads me to believe that people are unaware the acid exists in whatever they are throwing out.
And how about a little bit of safety and common sense measures taken by our astute cleanliness engineers?
How horrible! Hopefully the worker will make a full recovery.