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PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten – Minister of Public Housing, Environment, Spatial Planning and Infrastructure (Ministry VROMI) Hon. Maurice Lake is calling on residents, community councils and civic organizations to come together this weekend to help clean-up the districts.
All residents are being urged to use the weekend to clean-up their yard and put out their hurricane related debris outside their yard or alongside the road. Household garbage is not hurricane related debris.
Ministry VROMI will resume the pick-up of hurricane related debris on Monday, October 27.
Hurricane Gonzalo left in its wake a lot of downed trees in the various districts, and Minister Lake would like to see the communities coming together to help with the clean-up this Saturday and Sunday, October 25 and 26.
"The more hands we have on deck the better. We will get more accomplished within a shorter period of time. Every household and business has a personal responsibility to clean-up their surroundings. You cannot rely on government for everything, there is an individual responsibility involved,
"I was informed that the Student Government Association of the University of St. Martin has taken the initiative to clean-up the St. Maarten Zoo. This is where we need to come together as a community to get things done.
"At the same time, the clean-up of yards and around businesses prevents mosquito breeding and rodents. This protects public health, the general welfare and interests of the people, and in the end the quality of life of our people improves, and this is also a personal responsibility.
Everybody has to contribute and clean-up their surroundings," Minister Hon. Maurice Lake said on Friday.
Minister Lake also commends the Fire Department, Ministry VROMI staff, the different Emergency Support Functions that make-up the Emergency Operations Center, and other entities that have played a role in the post-Hurricane Gonzalo period in getting the country back on track and moving forward.
"I would like to commend the Nature Foundation for their outstanding work and assessments that have been carried out with respect to the environment and in identifying the challenges that exist," Minister Lake said on Friday.
The Minister is expecting to receive from Ministry VROMI next week an update assessment with respect to clean-up efforts within the districts along with the costs to the public treasury.
