Issue No. 601
Opinion
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29 August - 4 Sept. 2002 Issue No. 601 Opinion |
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 | Recommend this page | ||
Fly, mosquito
Swarms of flies have spoiled summer vacations in the resorts that now lie all along the north coast. Combined with the stifling heat and record levels of humidity, they contrived to drive holiday-makers back to the pollution of Cairo. Yet rather than seeking out the reasons behind this invasion of unwanted insect life -- the bad habits of beach-goers and the failure of resort administrations to undertake any effective collection of rubbish might be useful areas to explore -- the vast majority of those whose holidays were ruined were happy to blame the newly established rubbish dump 53km along the north coast highway. It is there, they insisted, that the flies originate, and it is from the rubbish tip that they eventually find their way to resorts on both sides of the spot in question. Yet the landfill site is in fact a far from unhealthy establishment. The rubbish deposited there is effectively treated and disposed of. It is unfortunate, though, that the notion of a state-of-the-art rubbish dump remains lost on most people who, instead of questioning their own behaviour, continue to associate the presence of flies with the existence of an establishment the operation of which they do not fully grasp. This is how, in an alarmingly well practised, an astonishingly common way, blame can be shifted, almost without thinking, on to the government, in this case the shoulders of the municipality of Alexandria.
One obvious fact, conveniently ignored, is that flies are incapable of travelling the kind of distances they are accused of daily travelling. They breed, rather, in the environment surrounding the beach houses, chalets and cabins that stand one after the other all along the coast, with very little space between. And the reason the flies have managed to spread so efficiently is that, in most of the resorts in question, no strict routine exists for collecting household waste and transporting it to rubbish collection spots (before being taken to the aforementioned dump) early enough in the morning. And the higher the temperature and humidity levels rise, the more hospitable the rubbish collection points become for the breeding and speedy regeneration of the swarming flies and other annoying insects.
According to the results of research publicised by the governor of Alexandria, moreover, the issue is compounded, predictably enough, by the fact that many resorts employ outdated and inefficient systems to filter sewage which is then used to water the trees and plants that adorn the said chalets and cabins. So not only are there swarms of flies, but there are unsavoury odours. And the place becomes a perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes, as if anything more were needed to further spoil the vacation of holiday makers. Some sites even use the solid remains of filtered sewage as a fertiliser. There is nothing very surprising, then, in the oft-discussed invasion of the flies.
While flies appear to reign supreme over the north coast, mosquitoes, in their turn, are in the process of acquiring control of Cairo, the city to which the holiday-makers have returned in despair. And mosquitoes, if anything, are worse than flies: they not only pursue their victims, relentlessly, both within their homes and without, but sting, cruelly. Nor do everyday insecticides appear to have much effect on the new, super breed of mosquito. What is required, in the light of current levels of heat and humidity, is increased attention to cleanliness and hygiene. Piles of rubbish must not be allowed to fester, which means they must be promptly removed. And this is the responsibility not only of the government, not only of government-administered and private-sector rubbish collection and disposal organisations but, first and foremost, of everyday people -- everywhere.
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