By EARYEL BOWLEG

Tribune Staff Reporter

ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

STATE Minister for the Environment Zane Lightbourne is concerned that some vehicles entering The Bahamas have been condemned in other countries.

His comment came while giving an update on removing derelict vehicles in Englerston, Sea Breeze, Garden Hills, Yamacraw, and Fox Hill constituencies.

He said officials are working to compile data showing the initiative’s success.

He explained that, under the law, a vehicle can be removed after being tagged by the Ministry of the Environment and given a 14-day removal notice. The ministry covers the cost of removing tagged cars.

He highlighted the “unfortunate circumstances” in which numerous vehicles are imported daily and criticised the practice of selling cars in poor condition, saying: “Once these vehicles are mashed or become unusable, then they just leave the vehicle someplace. A vehicle takes up a lot of space, and we just need persons to care as much for the industry. If you’re going to get involved in this type of industry, you need to have a certain care about what happens to that vehicle.”

“We have to be careful that we don’t import right-off vehicles that are put back together. You see a lot of vehicles now with the wheel dropping off, and you’d be like, how does something like that happen? They’re just on a highway, and there’s a real kick out where it seemed like the whole suspension systems failed.”