CAC Urges Proper Waste Management

The Consumer Affairs Commission (CAC) is encouraging Jamaicans to properly dispose of the increased waste being generated at home due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Waste management is one of the areas of focus by the agency for World Consumer Rights Day (WCRD) 2021, which is being observed on Monday (March 15), under the theme: ‘The COVID Conscious Consumer: Food Security, Waste Disposal and Money Management’.

Director of Communications at the CAC, Latoya Halstead, told JIS News that due to the pandemic, more persons are shopping online and there is concern about how the packaging in which the items arrive, are being handled.

In addition, she said it is important that persons are properly disposing of the face masks so as not to create an environmental hazard.

“It is critical that issues, which affect the environment and its sustainability are addressed. We are encouraging social distancing and many of us have turned to purchasing things online or having them delivered, but that action generates a lot of waste,” she noted.

“Also, the disposable masks, we need to dispose of them properly. When we see plastics being thrown in the gullies, we see how that impacts us, so we don’t want that to happen to us from a different source. We need to (properly) dispose of those packaging for items that we have delivered,” she emphasised.

Ms Halstead shared some advice on how consumers can managed the increased household waste.

“We need to repurpose our excess waste. That box (packaging) can be used to store items, the plastic bottles can serve as a planter for flowers and you can also reuse your newspapers as packing paper or cleaning aids. We have to take into consideration that…we contribute to the state of our environment so we need to be careful,” she said.

WCRD is observed annually on March 15. As a member of Consumers International, the CAC will join over 250 consumer member organisations in 120 countries to mark the day.

The observance is also part of activities for World Consumer Rights Week from March 14 to 20.

The CAC is the national agency responsible for consumer advocacy. For further information, persons can call 876-906-5425 or email info@cac.gov.jm.

Source: JIS