The Ogun State Environmental Protection Agency has closed down five industries in response to complaints from local communities about their continuous discharge of untreated wastewater into the environment.
The companies were Nixim Paper Limited, and Long Xiang Aluminum both at the Sagamu axis of the Lagos -Ibadan Expressway, New Shidai Manufacturing Limited, Mowe in Obafemi Owode Local Government Area and two unregistered companies operating illegally in the Ogere axis of the Lagos -Ibadan Expressway.
The Chairman of the Ogun State Taskforce on Environmental Compliance and Enforcement, Farook Akintunde in a statement, said he led the enforcement team to seal the companies after the agency received several petitions from the immediate communities complaining about the environmental violations by the industries within the axis.
Akintunde, who doubles as a Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Environment, said earlier efforts to reach out to the companies to stop work and correct the abnormalities were not responded to.
According to him, “The state government was therefore left with no options than to shut them down in the overriding public interest and compelled them to stop their harmful environmental practice as it was also discovered that they don’t have Effluent Treatment Plants ETP which they must have and installed to stop their incessant and harmful wastewater discharge”.
Also speaking on their closure, the Special Adviser to the Governor on the Ogun State Environmental Protection Agency OGEPA, Oluwadare Kehinde, said the company will now be forced after several warnings to abide by wastewater regulations in the state which is crucial at preventing water pollution and maintaining water quality standard.
