The idiots who run the NSWMA are the ones who placed us at risk for the
CHIK-V and now ZIK-V. They cut out communal receptacles and implemented
kerb-side collection. As an Environmental Health officer, I will now put
forward why that increases the risks of mosquito breeding. The Aedes
aegypti mosquito has a flight range of up to 100 metres, some literature
put it at 65M max, for our purposes, let's leave it at 100. Communal
receptacles are what we call 'skips' or dumpsters and they are to be
placed at central locations within an area. Kerb-side collection is
collection of garbage from individual receptacles at each house. Now,
think about how that is executed: the garbage truck drives up to each
home, a man comes off and picks the receptacle up and empties it into
the truck - tedious and time-consuming and the truck has to make many
stops. Communal receptacles at a central location throughout various
points in the community strategically located results in the garbage
being handled by the workers in a more sanitary manner if they are
implemented properly.
We all know that the NSWMA has issues with
trucks and reliability and funds to maintain the trucks, as a result,
garbage has been known to go uncollected for weeks - months in some
cases. So, uncollected garbage at each home puts the members of that
household in a position where there is proliferation of potential (and
actual) mosquito breeding sites. Had the garbage been placed at a
central receptacle outside of the flight range of the Aedes aegypti
mosquito breeding of these mosquitoes would be less likely and people
would therefore be less likely to be bitten and control would be a lot
less of a problem. Additionally, we would now have only a few places to
clean up whereas with the kerb-side collection, each household has a
garbage issue.
Aedes aegypti mosquitoes unlike many other
mosquitoes prefer human blood upwards of 95% of its blood is from humans
- therefore they are considered one of the most 'domesticated'
mosquitoes on earth. Other species such as its cousins Aedes albopictus
and Ae. medio-vittatus are not as selective, Ae. albopictus rarely being
seen with more than 75% human blood and the Ae. medio-vittatus
(Tree-Hole Mosquito) having less than 50%. There are other mosquitoes
such as the Culex quinquefasciattus, C. negripalpus, C. corniger, C.
mediator and C. janitor all of which are found in Jamaica are less picky
and bite pretty much anything with blood that moves (species of Culex
are known to spread heartworms in dogs).
But I digress...
Problem:
kerb-side (house to house) collection of garbage; it has its pluses and
is what is used in most 'developed' countries as a means of collection.
It is fancy and ideal for the householder but it is not what we must
adopt solely because it is used in developed countries - that should
never be a reason we adopt anything. Additionally, the richer countries up north tend to not have these mosquitoes that spread these diseases. These countries use such methods
because they are in a position to fund it - Jamaica is not!!! This
method puts each household at risk of mosquito-borne diseases especially
since the trucks don't work that well and garbage often goes
uncollected for weeks on end. It is better to have the garbage piled-up
in one location outside the flight-range of the Ae. aegypti than have
many small piles of garbage at each premises.
Solution: Go
back to a central receptacle, at strategic locations in the communities
ideally outside of the flight-range of the mosquitoes, people will
eventually start using them. This reduces maintenance costs on the
trucks due to less wear and tear as a result of constant stopping, the
trucks wouldn't need 3 to 4 workers all lifting heavy loads at frequent
stops. Couple this with Public Education, and we will see the billions
saved - you can thank me later.
