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Industries
urged to protect city's natural environment
SECTOR ADVISED
TO EMPLOY ENVIRONMENTAL AUDIT
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ADDIS ABABA(July 17,2008) - Industries must design
and plan a mechanism by which they can contribute to reduce environmental
pollution, the Addis Ababa City Administration Environmental Protection
Authority (EPA) urged on Tuesday.
The authority said it was empirical that the industries do so as their
waste products have direct impact on the well being of the natural
resource, environment, people, and animals.
The statements were made by Dr. Hailu Worku, EPA General Manager in
his key remarks at a training workshop the authority organized for
representatives from the industry sector in Addis Ababa.
He said that in order to reverse the environmental pollution trends
particularly by wastes generated from manufacturing industries, it
has been found very necessary to build the capacity of partners at
the industries and staff of EPA in environmental auditing instruments.
Most of industries in the city have no proper avoidance of waste products,
Hailu said.
During the workshop, a presentation was made on the concept and need
of Environmental audit, a mechanism said to play an instrumental role
in the protection and maintaining of the natural environment.
Hailu said environmental auditing would facilitate for the industries
to identify and reduce wastes from its source, right from raw material
storeroom, to the entire production process.
The audit is also designed to help industries comply with environmental
related rules and regulations, while engaged in their day-to-day operations,
Hailu explained.
Industry owners and managers drawn from 25 industries in the city
attended the one-day workshop at the Ghion Hotel on Industrial Development
and Pollution Control efforts of the Addis Ababa, organized by Addis
Ababa Environmental protection Authority (EPA) in collaboration with
UN-Habitat for at Ghion Hotel.
A three day long workshop for technical persons, industrial technologists
will continue on Wednesday at the authority's office.
Most industries are in the city are concentrated along Akaki Rivers'
bank.
The major industries are food and beverage, textile tanneries, chemical,
rubber and plastic, paper and paper products, metallic and non-metallic
mineral products and wood industries.
Addis Ababa is one of the cities where the problem of water pollution
is at its highest state at present.
Water quality in almost all the assessed sites along Akaki River was
found to be deteriorated and not meeting the WHO, United States Environmental
Protection Authority guide lines for river water.
30% of the city water is supplied from ground water. |
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