UPDATE: Black River councillor wants to see end to dumping of debris at Independence Park
Published:Monday | January 12, 2026 | 10:56 AMAlbert Ferguson/Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
Black River’s Councillor Dwight Salmon has condemned the continued use of the town’s Independence Park for the dumping of debris in the ongoing clean-up in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa but Mayor Richard Solomon is defending its use, saying it is an emergency measure.
Salmon told Thursday’s meeting of the St Elizabeth Municipal Corporation that he was not happy with the continued use of the park, which is used for civic activities among other things, by the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA) through the Southern Parks and Market (SPM) as a dumpsite.
“Mr Chairman, based on the prime minister’s intervention, I believe Independence Park in the first place, the dumping was wrong, and I never believed that the dumping would still continue,” said Salmon. “Even up to yesterday (January 7), I realised that even solid waste is part of the team that is currently dumping at Independence Park.”
Black River was battered by strong winds and high waves during the passage of Hurricane Melissa, damaging and destroying critical infrastructure such as the town’s hospital, schools, the courthouse, commercial buildings, and homes.
When The Gleaner visited the park following the meeting, SPM teams were observed using a front-end loader to remove debris from the grounds via an open-body truck, even as another privately owned truck was seen dumping broken furniture at the site.
In registering his disgust with the situation while addressing the StEMC meeting, Salmon said the impact of the hurricane is still having a psychological toll on residents, and continued dumping is not helping the healing process.
“Personally, I still wake up with nightmares from the trauma that I suffered during Melissa. The park should be reserved for recreation, people are stressed. Going forward, I think we should implement a programme now to stop dumping and start cleaning now.”
While acknowledging the emotional weight of the issue and agreeing that the park is “sacred”, Solomon said from a logistical perspective, the park had to be used as a temporary dumpsite.
TEMPORARY DUMPSITE
“The reality is that Hurricane Melissa came, and not everything we would have planned for was possible. Immediately after the hurricane, the town was inaccessible; major thoroughfares were blocked,” said Solomon. “NWA (National Works Agency) came to us and said the only way you are going to have access to the town is to have Independence Park as a temporary dumpsite.
“All the corridors were totally blocked, so it would have been impossible to utilise the main dumpsite.”
Solomon added that an alternative site on Crane Road was identified after the fact, while noting that a firm commitment has been made for the removal of the debris from Independent Park to restore it to its proper function.
“Solid Waste is in charge of removing all debris that exists currently at Independence Park. A commitment has been made for the dump to be removed and to restore the facility back to its glory days, and I am saying that it will be done,” said Solomon.
He said while the need to remove the debris is pressing, the need to reopen schools also requires urgent attention and he gave that priority attention.
“We can’t allow our students to be in a deficit while the rest of Jamaica is running away. If I have to apologise for that, so be it, but I acted in the best interest of reopening school for the citizens of Black River,” he said.
Solomon emphasised that getting children back into classrooms was paramount, arguing that the park would be fully cleared and restored in short order.
During a recent tour of Black River, which included Independence Park, Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness said that park should be quickly restored to its intended use,
“This is Independence Park in Black River… we don’t want to turn this into a mini-dump,” said Holness, who further noted that the debris removal is critical not only for aesthetics but also for public health, especially amid the concerns about leptospirosis.
EDITOR'S NOTE: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that the Black River mayor wants to see an end to dumping of debris at Independence Park. We regret the error.