Garbage collection better,
cleaners clearing roadsides
PHILIPSBURG--Garbage collection in Philipsburg and its environs has been regularised and no more prolonged pileups are expected in the coming days.
Three garbage trucks from the French side were contracted to help with the cleanup. Five different contractors remove garbage from the districts involved.
Head of Public Works Department Maintenance Division Claudius Buncamper told The Daily Herald garbage collection was back on track and was much better than the last few weeks. “It is not up to full force, but we will get there.”
Several cleanup crews are also working in the districts to clear the garbage littering the roadside. Although the large garbage piles were removed from the districts, many items still remain around the collection areas.
Buncamper said that in continued preparation for the hurricane season, crews from Clean St. Maarten N.V. were collecting large household appliances and tree branches that could not be removed by the regular garbage trucks.
Asked if the pileup could be expected again, Buncamper said everything was fine now and would remain the same pending the implementation of the new garbage contracts or a new approach.
A new garbage collection system was designed for the island during the tenure of Commissioner Roy Marlin and has been on bid. However, it is expected that it will be scrapped by present Public Works Commissioner Theo Heyliger due to its hefty cost to government and taxpayers.
