JEDDAH, 6 August 2005 — Some South Jeddah residents are raising a stink with government officials over putrid and potentially dangerous clouds of smoke from burning garbage that has some people gagging and others fleeing with their families for a breath of fresh air, Al-Madinah newspaper reported.
As with most piles of burning garbage, there’s not much of a problem if you’re upwind, but residents living on the east side of Jeddah-Makkah expressway are decidedly downwind of the dump, and it’s getting them down. “Before sunset, workers start burning garbage,” said Basem Al-Amoudi, who lives near the dump site. “The smoke is smelled everywhere in the neighborhood. Many residents in the neighborhood are becoming frequent visitors to hospitals complaining of breathing problems and chest pains.”
Al-Amoudi told Madinah he piles the family in the car and flees. “I’ve started to get out with my family before they start burning the garbage to escape the toxic smoke.” You can’t head for the hills, though, because the burning site actually is in the mountains. The hope was that the mountains would serve as a barrier between the putrid — and possibly toxic — smell of burning garbage. Anyone who has a nose knows it’s not working. Along with the smoke comes a variety of particulate residue from the garbage being burned that wafts along on the wind, prompting health concerns, particularly those with existing respiratory conditions. “We advise those with chest problems to stay away from smoke,” said Dr. Medhat Dakhakhini, a pulmonary physician at Bakhsh Hospital in Jeddah. He said smoke inhalation can result in bronchitis.
“Such problems are difficult to solve,” the doctor said. “The best way to cure it is to stay away from what causes it in the first place.” Resident Omar Sami wonders if the smoke is having negative effects on farms and on underground aquifers.
He said that large areas east of the expressway are farmlands, and he says the cloud is killing off trees and may be harming the groundwater. Some residents believe that a better solution than moving South Jeddah or building more hospitals there might be to move the burning site. “Not only does the smoke spread through our neighborhood, the winds carry it sometimes to neighborhoods west of the expressway,” said Jari Al-Garni, another resident.
