According to her, the pollution from the company has worsened such that they had no option than to send the students home for health and safety reasons.

[contextly_sidebar id=”v2rlkIVNP9DyM0xmVvzRkI2AaRJ244k2″]“The student agitated that because of the smoke they could not stay. The boy’s dormitory and the classroom block are close to the factory. Since Tuesday the stench and the smoke which for some time now has subsided erupted again. Ghana Education Service is very much aware of the situation,” she said.

She said all efforts made by the management of the school and the district education office to get the situation addressed have proven futile.

“Some time ago, we were all invited to a meeting, the management of the school, the District Education Office and the management of the company, and then when we expressed our concerns, we were asked to put certain measures in place which to some extent we did, but we do not know what happened, and this week since Tuesday the smoke and the stench are being coming again,”she said.

The pollution by the Chinese company at Asutsuare in the Greater Accra Region, is reportedly affecting the health of some two thousand students of the school.

Speaking to Citi News about the situation, the Headmistress of the school, Sylvia Baaba Yankey, said academic work is being affected by the pollution.

“We experience the fumes on the compound every now and then, some of them who took ill were taken to the hospital. According to some of them, the doctor advised them to stop smoking, meanwhile they don’t smoke” she said.

Pollution by Kuntunse tomato factory

Residents at Korleman City, an estate at Kuntunse in the Ga West Municipality, last year raised similar concerns about how the activities of a Chinese Tomato paste factory was affecting them.

The residents first raised concerns over the possible long-term health hazards, following the improper disposal of waste by operators of the factory.

According to them, thick smoke filled the air during the company’s operation during the day and at night, with excessive noise.

Independent investigations by the Environmental Protection Agency, EPA revealed that the tomato factory was operating illegally and the agency proceeded to fine the company GHc15,000.

The company was also ordered to halt any form of production.

The factory, which belongs to some Chinese expatriates, stopped operating for a while but resumed full production again.

After a back and forth between residents and the Ga West Municipal Assembly, the Minister for Environment, Science and Technology, ordered the company to close down.

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By: Farida Yusif/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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The management of the company has been given a 12-hour ultimatum to produce work permit, traveling and all relevant documents to prove their legal status in the country.

The Northern Regional Security Council Chairman, who doubles as the Regional Minister, Salifu Saeed, gave the order at the proposed quarry site during a fact-finding mission on Monday.

He said failure to produce the relevant documents could lead to a demolition of the company’s structures and also the management members’ arrest.

According to him, a permanent security surveillance squad will be stationed there pending further investigations.

Salifu Saeed said the government, although promotes partnership with local and foreign companies, is keen on operations that are in accordance with the law.

He thereby advised foreign investors willing to invest in the Northern Region to follow due processes to avoid litigation.

He warned that his office will not tolerate any illegal mining activities in the region.

A lot of Chinese nationals engaged in illegal gold mining in Ghana have been deported, whereas others are facing trial. following a government clamp down on illegal miners nationwide.

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By: Abdul Karim Naatogmah/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Minister stops operations by ‘illegal’ Chinese quarry in Savelugu appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The project agreement is for the construction of an onshore 278 kilometer natural Gas pipeline infrastructure from the Takoradi Aboadze enclave to the power enclaves in Tema in the Greater Accra Region.

The recent execution of the agreement dated 11^th April 2017 represents a revival of a project which was initially conceived in 2016.

This enabled the immediate commencement of site work such as topographical/ geotechnical site surveys and Front end engineering designs (FEED) which are already underway, as well as on site  civil construction activities which will commence within the next ten days.

The financial structure of the project includes an innovative  15 year Build operate and transfer (BOT) model where by the Yantai Jereh group along with their investment partners will fully pre-finance  all construction activities related to the project with absolutely no upfront cost being born by the Ghanaian government.

The entire investment made by the Chinese conglomerate will be recouped by charging transportation fees based on volumes of gas being moved through the pipeline over a period of 15 years after which ownership of the entire infrastructure will be transferred to the Ghanaian government completely free of any recurring charges or financial encumbrances.

The proposed gas transportation charge of approximately $1.56USD per MMBtu (A standard unit of measurement used to denote the amount of heat energy in fuels and the ability of appliances) is a fraction of the $4.05 USD per MMBtu historically charged by the offshore West African Pipeline Company (WAPCO) for similar natural gas transportation services.

Other advantages of the onshore pipeline include the fact that it will enable the secure transportation of natural gas energy resources generated from oil fields located in the Western region to the East of the country whilst traversing multiple regions along the coast line of Ghana.

Multiple regional natural gas distribution stations will be constructed between the two major load centers of Takoradi and Greater Accra with stations being located in Takoradi, Cape Coast, Winneba, Nsawam, and Tema  earmarked for phase one as well as a  potential station in the Volta region in phase two of the project ,these stations will   enable manufactures wishing to construct factories to connect directly to the infrastructure thus receiving cost effective natural gas to power their  industrial operations.

The project marks a momentous milestone for the newly elected NPP government who has pledged massive infrastructure development and industrialization initiatives such as “one district, one factory” to spur economic growth.

Yantai Jereh’s Ghana based Senior Vice President for West Africa, Gao Yong, who will take responsibility for the implementation of the project went on record to say “This project represents a massive opportunity of growth for both Ghana and the Yantai Jereh group, we have been highly impressed with the new administration and their ability to get things done quickly and professionally”.

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By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin

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