Kwara govt warns against environmental pollution in marketplaces
In a bid to ensure a cleaner environment, the Kwara State government, through the State Environmental Protection Agency (KWEPA), has warned residents, especially traders, against environmental pollution and indiscriminate dumping of refuse in markets to safeguard the health and wellness of citizens.
In a statement issued by its press secretary, Aliyu Jamiu Amode, the Acting General Manager of the Kwara State Environmental Protection Agency (KWEPA), Hajia Idayat Folorunsho, while giving the stern warning during the Thursday routine environmental exercise in significant markets within Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, said traders should complement such efforts through consistent sanitary measures and proper evacuation of wastes in the markets.
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Represented by Alh Yunusa Jida, the Chief Environmental Officer, Hajia Folohunsho, while leading other staff of the Agency to some markets in Ilorin, re-echoed the sensitivity of the markets as a meeting point where everybody depends on source for their foodstuffs and other groceries, hence, keeping the markets clean was essential to prevent the outbreak of diseases.
She reiterated that indiscriminate dumping of refuse around the market areas and other environmental vices capable of inviting flies and other pests should be shunned to curb the upsurge of pandemics and other preventable diseases.
Folorunsho, however, stressed that all traders and shop owners needed to observe the Thursday weekly market environmental sanitation from 7:00 am to 10:00 am as directed by the State Ministry of Environment, warning that contraventions of the State ecological laws would attract appropriate sanctions.
The KWEPA team, which visited markets like Itamadu, Maraba, Ipata and Oja-oba, inspected the environmental sanitation exercise in the markets and ensured environmental laws were obeyed.
