Dear Editor,

I work from home and rely on fresh air to circulate in my house/office. I have no air conditioning because of the high cost of electricity.

Over the past three days, in the evenings, the smell of burning wood has been permeating the air and invariably stays in the house where I work. Doing work on the computer requires focus and clarity, but I’m constantly distracted by having to gasp for air to resist the burning in my throat that comes with smoke. I have called the police on numerous occasions and have received no conclusive response to have the matter stopped, so I no longer bother to call them.

The advertisements of the Forestry Department says that it is illegal to light a fire or operate a coal kiln within one kilometre of a forest reserve; however, there is no reference to communities where people live and work. There are elderly people living in this community and clearly the individual or individuals burning coal have no care for those of us who live here.

For some reason I am unable to identify an e-mail address for the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA), which is supposed to be the environmental planner and enforcer; therefore, I am unable to copy them on this letter, so I am left to choke and cough without assistance from the relevant authorities. I suppose I will need a committee of several communities to get any action from the Government, whose purpose does not appear to include the well-being of citizens.

In Jamaica it has evolved that most citizens mind their own business if they are not immediately affected by the actions of a few, so the affected individuals have to ‘hug it up’ because we fear for our lives or the tarnishing of our reputations by the political class for partisan purposes. It has become increasingly clear to me that the Government does not have the ability or capacity to manage the affairs of the country to the benefit of the citizens, which leads to many unnecessary problems.

Laws which incur fines for individuals who breach are required if the authorities hope to put an end to coal and bush burning in or near residential communities. The practise affects many who do not wish to live in a smoke-filled home. But we have learned to shut up and take whatever comes our way.

Community management should be a local government function since the issues affecting communities cannot be seen from the hills of St Andrew, and the councillor person who won the last election has not been here and most likely knows nothing of the conditions affecting those of us whose taxes pay his salary. Then again, neither did most of them before him. We haven’t heard from the Member of Parliament (MP) either, which I’m sure will change with the election due next year.

Now that the constitution is being revised, local government must be enshrined in it to enable and empower all citizens to manage their affairs. Remote councillors and MPs seem to be too busy making their living to be concerned with issues that affect those of us who are not politically tied to them, their party, or business endeavours.

There are many issues relating to our community and none of the political parties has been here to express an interest in enabling our visions for our community. They only speak to us through the media about what they intend to do for us, and in our interest, having never asked what we had in mind or what our experiences are.

They don’t live in my community, neither do they visit. They don’t know of the issues in my community, so the affairs of my community must be repatriated to us. We are not here to be their subjects or have them be rulers over us.

Meanwhile, I’m choking on someone’s coal kiln smoke and burning bush.

Hugh M Dunbar

hmdenergy@gmail.com