SCRAP metal exporters will have to register with Jamaica Trade & Invest, obtain a licence from the Trade Board, while the Customs Department will oversee the packing of their containers under new government regulations.

The regulations were tabled by Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Karl Samuda, in the House of Representatives on Tuesday.

The new regulations require that no licensee should export any scrap metal without giving the nearest police station not less than 72 hours' notice, in writing.

Persons under the age of 18 will not be allowed to deal in scrap metal.

The minister may refuse to issue a licence in a number of cases including:

. where in his opinion the issuing of the licence would not be in the public interest;

. an application contains or is based on a false or misleading representation;

. the person has been convicted, during the period of five years preceding the application;

. in respect of businesses, a resolution has been passed for voluntary winding up or an order made by a court of competent jurisdiction for its winding up.

There are also time limits in dealing with scrap metal, as the regulations state that "a person shall not deal in scrap metal except between the hours of half-past six o'clock in the morning and half-past six o'clock in the evening."

Samuda said that exporters of scrap metal can obtain detailed procedural information on the new regulations from the websites of his ministry, Jamaica Trade and Invest, or the Trade Board.

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