Environment lobbyist wants Windalco's environmental permit suspended

 

Pressure is mounting on bauxite company Windalco after effluent from its Ewarton plant polluted the Rio Cobre in St. Catherine and caused a fish kill on the weekend.

 

Diana McCaulay, founder of  the Jamaica Environment Trust (JET), is calling for all of  Windalco's environmental permits to be suspended until it implements corrective measures to prevent further pollution of  the river.

 

Companies which engage in activities which could pollute the air, water or land are required to obtain environmental permits.

 

Mrs McCaulay, who visited the Rio Cobre on Monday, described the chemical spill as devastating in general, but also specifically "for the people, in various ways, who make their living off the river."

 

She said she also observed that another part of the river was "just absolutely covered in water hyacinth, which is an indicator species of pollution; and many of those were dying, so you know you are in trouble when a polution indicator starts to die."

 

She said, until Windalco environmental permits should be withdrawn until it constructs new holding ponds to manage the effluent.

 

There were reports that construction of the larger holding ponds and treatment facilities had begun, she said, but insisted that, the minister with portfolio responsibility for the environment should "revoke their permit or suspend thir permit until these treatment facilities are built, because, without that nothing is going stop this happening from time to time."

 

It's reported that trade effluent at Windalco overflowed into waterways in the area following heavy rain on Friday.

 

The spillage affected waterways in the vicinity of  the Rio Cobre, Byndloss, Vanity Fair and the Charlemont Foot Bridge.