“WE are serious in working on cleaning up the whole island one village at a time — they have to clean up or get cited,” Saipan Mayor Ramon B. Camacho told Variety in an interview.
Camacho said his office, the Commonwealth Healthcare Corporation-Environmental Health Disease Prevention and other partner agencies will create a task force in each village that will visit households regularly to discuss proper waste disposal and fine them if they do not follow the anti-littering law.
But a citation will not be their priority on their first visit, Camacho said.
“We want them to educate them on proper waste disposal,” he added.
He noted that Environmental Health Disease Prevention is particular about maintaining a clean environment because improperly disposed household waste and untrimmed vegetation may harbor pests.
In an interview, Environmental Health Disease Prevention Director John Tagabuel echoed Camacho’s concerns.
“We encourage each household to clean up their surroundings because unclean areas become breeding grounds of pests such as rats and mosquitoes which pose a risk to our health,” he added.
He said illegal dumping is also rampant in certain vacant lots and has to be addressed at the village level through proper education at each household.
“We need to help each other to reach our common goal which is to have a safe, clean and healthy environment for everybody especially for our children,” he said.
The mayor and partner agencies met on Monday at his office to discuss the formation of the task force and the laws pertaining to littering, illegal dumping, unclean household environment and proper garbage disposal.
RB Camacho
