COME Monday, the Westmoreland Parish Council will begin ridding the parish streets of stray animals. The revived effort comes in the wake of the construction of a $1.3-million pound.

The council has been working in collaboration with the Frome Sugar Factory, on whose six acres of land the facility stands.

The areas in which the strays will first be targeted are Negril, Whitehouse and Savanna-La-Mar. According to Savanna-la-Mar Mayor, Ralph Anglin, the council instructed him to start removing the animals from the streets on July 23. To this end, he said the council had already contacted the operator of the truck that will be used to collect and transport the animals to the pound.

The persistent problem of stray animals, particularly cows, roaming the streets, has long plagued the parish, resulting in several road accidents.

The problem is particularly noticeable along sections of the North Coast Highway project, which connects the tourist resorts of Negril and Montego Bay. With the lightposts removed to facilitate the roadwork, sections of the route are in virtual darkness. The presence of herds of cows along the darkened roadway presents a hazardous situation, especially for visitors not accustomed to seeing cows along a highway.