THE recent sealing of a fast food outlet in Asaba, Delta State capital, was an indication of the state government’s zero-tolerance for poor sanitary condition of some mega restaurants and eateries. In fact, it sends a direct signal to the public that failure to sanitize the environment of their operations would in no time land them in serious trouble.
Neighbours who were at the receiving end of the environmental fiasco, had petitioned the popular restaurant to the Delta State Environment Protection Agency (DELSEPA) for the resolution of the issues at stake. They were said to have painted a sad picture of how the sealed facility had polluted its environment in terms of noise and air. This moved the State Environmental Protection Agency to invite the entity for talks. Following which the said restaurant was directedto relocate its noisy generator but it never did.
Following the rule of law, the environmental agency approached a court of competent jurisdiction for intervention, citing Section 39 of the Delta State Environmental Protection Agency Law of 1997. In the final analysis, the court ordered the seal up of the organization forflagrant violation of the provision of the law. This, in our view, will serve as deterrence to other fast food vendors and production across the state systems generally.
We commend DELSEPA for the legal steps it took to bring the offending party to book; to make it account for the pollution of the environment, which we perceive as a violation of the right of citizens to clean air and noiseless habitat. Noise emanating from some generators could be deafening indeed, causing ear conditions that only, the hospitals can treat.
Besides, air pollution with its offensive odour like the one emitted by the Asaba fast food place, could spread disease-causing viruses, capable of infecting the neighbourhood, customers and the public. Environmental pollution such as the one above could trigger health challenges in the population. In the event of the manifestation of the above, private and public funds would be required to find a proper cure.
Moreover, there are non-food business entities that belch thick smoke into the sky and polluting the land with industrial wastes. Individuals further contribute their quota to environmental pollution by the manner refuse is disposed at various points in urban and even rural communities. It gets worse during the rains.
The Asaba scenario, unfortunately, is replicated across the state especially in major urban centres where seemingly reputable eateries exist. The narrative is similar in other parts of the country where fast food joints operate with less statutory supervision, causing unquantifiable harm to the public. Businesses, sadly, get away with pollution of the environment such as the Asaba example because of weak enforcement of the said environmental law.
Without any iota of doubt, a clean environment promotes public health and beautifies the landscape. It has the potential of saving huge sums that could have been spent on medications to treat ailments arising from air, water and land pollution.
While we laud the efforts of DELSEPA to rein in the Asaba facility, we urge government to take a look at the law with a view to strengthen and make it more functional. It’s our strong position too that there should be regular monitoring of hospitality facilities in the state and other production enterprises like livestock outfits to guard against pollution of the environment. For the environmental officers that would be engaged for the exercise, we strongly advise against demanding for bribes to cover up the misdeeds of culprits.
It is also crucial that well-articulated periodic campaign against pollution of the environment is crafted to enlighten the public on the print, electronic and social media. Possibly, religious and traditional institutions should be enlisted as a matter of deliberate action to help propagate the message. There is indeed need to sanitize messy production facilities.
