Trash mounds a ‘time bomb’ for public health
The president of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (KEELPNO), Tzeni Kremastinou, said on Wednesday that some 6,000 tons of trash that have accummulated on the streets of the capital due to ongoing industrial action by municipal garbage collectors constituted a ?ticking time bomb? for public health.
Speaking to Skai Radio station, Kremastinou said that if the trash is left to fester for much longer, it will not only be the garbage itself that poses a health risk but also the flies, gnats and mosquitoes that feed off it. These insects can transfer bacteria such as salmonella to humans, the KEELPNO chief warned.
She echoed an appeal by municipal authorities for citydwellers not to bring down household trash containing organic waste to overflowing dumpsters as this will compound the problem.
According to sources, municipal employees who have been blocking access to the capital?s main landfill in Ano Liosia for nearly two weeks are still receiving their salaries as technically they are not on strike but using their work shifts to maintain the blockade.
