Ministry orders a halt to construction works
The Ministry of Environment Science, Technology and Innovation (MESTI) has ordered Papaye, a fast food company in the country, currently undertaking development in a green belt area at Tema Community 7, to stop work.
Advertisement
It said Papaye did not have any permit from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to undertake any development whatsoever on the piece of land.
The ministry has also directed the EPA to enforce the provision of EPA Act 1994 (Act 490) and Environmental Assessment Regulation 1999 (Li 1652) to the letter and bring sanity to the area.
This was made known in a press statement signed by the Public Relations Officer of MESTI, Alhaji Zakaria Musah, on behalf of the Minister, Mr Akwasi Opong-Fosu, following an emergency meeting that was held on November 28, 2014 to discuss ongoing development in the green belt area at Tema Community 7.
The meeting was called after residents of the Valco Park Area in Tema Community Seven petitioned against illegal development going on in the green belt.
The ministry has additionally tasked the EPA to assess the cost of restoring the land to a green belt status and surcharge the developer, Papaye.
“It is important to note that the green belt, lying between Communities seven and eight, has been created to serve as a place for shelter in time of disaster,” it said.
Lawlessness in the country
The statement said the green belt had underneath it certain underground water supply pipelines, major sewer lines, and other lines serving utility systems running through it and fire hydrants . The statement said the greenbelt area is the only place in the city where major repairs are carried out on sewer blockages and pipe bursts.
Other Trending Stories
It said the ministry had noted with serious concern the continuous encroachment on state property with impunity by some organisations and private developers, “and wishes to state that the ministry cannot continue to countenance this kind of lawlessness in the country.”
The ministry, therefore, assures the residents of Tema Community 7 to calm down and respect the rule of law as their petition was receiving the urgent and necessary attention.
Background
During a field visit to Tema last Wednesday by a delegation from the MESTI led by the minister, Mr Opong Fosu, and other interest groups, some residents of Tema Community 7 complained about ongoing developments in the green belt. The residents, in fact, rushed on Mr Opong-Fosu, demanding answers.
The agitated residents threatened to strip themselves naked if current happenings on the land were not discontinued.
It’s illegal
The Deputy Executive Director, Field Operations of the EPA, Mr John A. Pwamang, who was on the field trip, affirmed that the agency had received a petition from the residents regarding one Mr Anang Tetteh, who is said to be the original owner of the land and who is said to have given it out to a developer.
He said from the records at the Accra East Regional Office of the EPA, a proposed project issued with an environmental permit number TMCT00136 on March 31, 2011 expired on March 30,2013.
Mr Pwamang, therefore, deplored the encroachment on the land by the current developer who the residents have identified to be the Papaye Restaurant.
“When you are given permit for a development in a green belt, you are expected to build light edifices and amusement facilities as a way of preserving the area. Meanwhile, permit for construction on the site is not transferable,” he said.