Latest update April 25th, 2024 12:59 AM
Apr 27, 2012 News
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is threatening legal action
against a Mon Repos businessman who has refused to comply with an order to cease operations at his ice factory.
The cease order was issued following complaints from residents of the community that the noise levels and fumes emanating from the generator were severely affecting their wellbeing.
The resort to the court stems from the businessman’s refusal to comply with the EPA cease order, although the police had also intervened in an attempt to enforce it.
Kaieteur News understands that the EPA took action following a recent visit to the facility which is located at lot 79-80 Mon Repos North. The visit was to determine compliance with the EPA’s previously made recommendations, to mitigate all forms of pollution caused by the operation.
According to the EPA, at the time of the inspection, its officers noted that the generator was in operation and noise levels were above the Guyana National Bureau of Standards’ recommended limit for noise emissions into the environment, which are 75 decibels during the daytime and 60 decibels during the night.
Residents related that this is not the first time that the proprietor has been ordered to cease operations, which commenced around August last year.
An official from the Ministry of Housing had issued a similar order a few months ago.
The residents claimed that the generator at the factory operates almost on a 24-hour basis and is most annoying at nights.They claimed that they had to resort to the authorities for help after several direct complaints to the proprietor failed to provide relief.
“We cannot sleep at nights. We complained to the police and were not getting any assistance at first,” one of the affected residents told Kaieteur News.
On Wednesday, a senior police official on East Coast Demerara confirmed that they are monitoring the situation. According to the lawman, a complaint was received and an inspection was carried out at the premises on Monday.
The police had also instructed the businessman to cease operations until they conclude their investigations, and there was temporary relief.
However, the residents informed that a few hours after the police left, the noise resumed. “They put on their generator at 4pm on Tuesday and only turned it off at three the following morning,” one resident complained.
“There are a lot of elderly people living here and they can’t get to sleep at nights. Some people have had to move out,” another resident lamented.
A source at the ice factory told this newspaper that the owner is at present making arrangements with the Guyana Power and Light Incorporated to have direct power and reduce dependence on the generator. The source said that the situation could be remedied within a few weeks.
It was pointed out that it will cost the proprietor several millions to rectify the problem.
This newspaper was informed that there is another ice factory operating in the area which is attracting less attention than the one engaging the notice of the EPA.
“It is strange, though, that the residents are only complaining about one of the factories. We will be looking into the whole matter,” observed a police source, who is a member of the monitoring team.
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