EPA calls on industries to adhere to conditions of environmental permit

The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) has advised industries to strictly adhere to the conditions attached to the environmental permit issued to them by the Authority.

Mr Samuel Oteng, the Greater Accra East (Tema) Regional Director of the EPA, who gave the advice, said even though the conditions are attached to the permit issued, most industries fail to comply with them, with some not even reading it at all.

Speaking at the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) Tema Regional Annual General Meeting, he said the conditions were created from the assessments carried out for the issuance of the permit; therefore, management of industries must not only adhere to them but must also display them and ensure that staff were aware of them and also complied with them.

The AGI meeting was on the theme: “Creating a Conducive Business Environment for Industrial Competitiveness: 24-Hour in Perspective.”

Mr Oteng revealed that violations of the conditions and failure to renew the permit before its expiration attract sanctions.

Taking the AGI members through the permit process, he said it commenced with the submission of an application for environmental assessment, adding that the application must be accompanied by relevant documents such as a site plan and block plan, among others.

Mr Oteng added that a site inspection is then conducted by the EPA team to reconcile what was put on the application, consultation with neighbours is carried out, and other steps are taken, after which, if all steps have been exhausted and payment made, the permit is issued.

Touching on air pollution, he noted that the Air Quality Management Regulations have completely banned open burning in Ghana, adding that it was an offence punishable by law under the ACT.

He indicated that the EPA was engaging the metropolitan, municipal, and district assemblies to see how they could leverage their structures to implement the ban to prevent pollution from such open burning in the communities.

During an open forum session, participants at the meeting asked questions on the duration of the environmental permit, classification of the industries, and the different types of pollution and how to handle them.

Source: GNA

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