Imo State Government has begun the process of establishing a big waste recycling plant to curb indiscriminate dumping of refuse and create jobs.
The Commissioner for Environment, Dr. Ikechukwu Njoku, said on Wednesday in Owerri that Governor Hope Uzodimma approved the plan, noting that two international investors had shown interest in the project.
He added that the partners were holding talks with the state government on the plant to be sited on Port Harcourt Road, Owerri.
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According to Njoku, the state government is insisting that the partners make reasonable financial commitment before the design and other construction work on the plant commences.
He informed that the state was worried about the litany of plastic and other forms of wastes littered in parts of Owerri and environs, stressing that instead of allowing them to constitute nuisance and block waterways, the viable option would be to turn them to wealth.
Njoku said, “The problem we have in Imo is plastic waste disposal. The governor is thinking of establishing a recycling plant in Imo. We have a site on Port Harcourt Road, Owerri. We have two or three companies that are coming. We want to make sure that anybody acquiring land for it commits deposit.”
He asserted that the governor was placing premium on environmental issues, stressing that houses built on waterways against the master plan of the city would be demolished.
The commissioner disclosed that already, the affected buildings had been marked, urging the people to stop blocking the drainages to avert flooding.
To this end, he informed that an aggressive public enlightenment, such as town hall meetings, would be mounted soon at the grassroots on the appropriate way of waste disposal, which would involve monarchs, presidents-general, locals and local council officers. “This is because environment is nature and life.”
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