Three persons to be fined €150 each for taking out wrong garbage bag - ERA

Three people were caught taking out the incorrect garbage bag in St Paul's Bay on Friday and will be fined €150 each, the Environment and Resources Authority (ERA) said.

The authority was reacting to social media report of rampant littering in the locality, which the local council telling The Malta Independent on Thursday that this was an everyday occurrence.

Pictures showing mounds of rubbish left on the pavement in J Quintinus Street were uloaded to social media earlier this week, with residents describing the locality as the "new Maghtab."

The discarded items included black bags pilling on top of each other, boxes of plastic and glass bottles, and even an abandoned mattress.

The mess was cleared by local council workers within a few hours. 

A representative for the council said this was a common occurrence in the overpopulated locality. The council said it had contacted Wasteserv regarding the issue.

When contacted, Wasteserv CEO Tonio Montebello said the entity was responsible for receiving waste, not collecting it. He said it was ERA's responsibility to enforce regulations.

Questions sent to ERA on Thursday remained unanswered but the authority said yesterday that its Compliance & Enforcement Directorate of ERA carried out an exercise on Friday morning and monitored a number of spots at San Pawl il-Baħar in terms of the 'Abandonment, Dumping and Disposal of Waste in Streets and Public Spaces or Areas Regulations'. 

These Regulations were amended last year, making it illegal to take out the incorrect type of waste on any particular day, it said.

"As a result, 3 foreigners were caught taking out black bags of garbage this morning, when this is prohibited at the locality of San Pawl il-Baħar in terms of the mentioned Regulations. These individuals will be fined €150 each by the Authority."

ERA said these regulations also gave enforcement powers to the Police and LESA.

In fact, these entities are also carrying out investigations in various localities and issuing charges and fines accordingly.

Local Councils, through the Local Councils Act, are also obliged for the collection and removal of all refuse. In fact, Local Councils have agreements with specific contractors for the collection of this refuse.

"Hence, the responsible entities, including ERA, are doing their best to  mitigate this problem, and call for the co-operation from each and every citizen to take out garbage during the days and times established by law and communicated to them by their respective Local Councils. The public is also encouraged to use other available services like bulk refuse services and bring-in sites to throw away their refuse, whilst avoiding dumping it in front of the doors of other households," ERA said.

from The Malta Independent http://bit.ly/2ThwwOs
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