UMUAHIA—ABIA State Government has threatened to close down companies in the state operating in defiance of the environmental rules and regulations. Commissioner for Special Duties, Chief Chuka Odom warned while inspecting the premises of a company in the state capital, observed that apart from posing health hazards, disregard of such rules has been contributing to the incessant flooding of roads with effluent from the affected companies. Odom urged the companies to always keep handy their environmental impact assessment reports as government checks on the companies would henceforth become more regular.
He gave officials of the company four weeks to channel properly the liquid flowing from the company to Aba road, adding that the failure of the company to control the flow had led to the destruction of the road which was rehabilitated less than a year ago.
Said Odom: “There are Federal and state laws which companies must comply with. Unfortunately, most companies do not observe these laws thereby causing health hazards to the people. The reason for government’s insistence on the environmental impact assessment report is to protect the people living close to the companies. From what is happening in this company, the roads around the company have collapsed and we believe that it is not just ordinary water that caused it. We therefore expect the company to re-channel the liquid flowing from the company so that the road would no longer be flooded, while effort should be made to dispose of the effluent without allowing it onto the road.”
According to him apart from the offensive odour emitting from the company, the road being flooded is a major concern to government because tax payers’ money was spent in building it. He reminded officials of the company that the environmental impact assessment report ought to be ready even before the company commenced operations, warning that if the anomalies were not complied with within four weeks, the company would be closed down permanently.
Managing director of the company, who admitted that his company had not met the required safety standards, promised to correct all the anomalies before government’s next visit. He also promised to speed up the processing of the environmental impact assessment report in line with government regulations.
