The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is currently investigating dust and air pollution in Region Two and rice mills are under scrutiny.
This was disclosed at a public forum held in the boardroom of the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) on Tuesday by Head of Industry and Manufacturing, Odessa Duncan. Duncan informed that the agency had received several complaints of dust nuisance against two rice mills, namely, Vilvorden and Caricom Rice Mills.
Expounding on the issue was Acting Head of Agriculture, Junior Toney, who said that the agency immediately recommended the implementation of several mitigation measures to curb the dust nuisance. He added that the proposed measures were not implemented. Concerning the pollution (dust and air) of Vilvorden Rice Mill, Toney noted that several air-quality assessments were conducted at the mill which reflected good air quality in the area. Several follow-up checks were conducted to ascertain the level of compliance with mitigations measures that were recommended.
Toney also disclosed that a prohibition notice was issued against the mill on April 6, ordering the facility to cease operations. The agency is currently in court proceedings with the mill to enforce compliance with the measures outlined by the agency. The parties were to appear in court again on July 20.
As it relates to Caricom Rice Mills, Toney said the agency received several complaints of dust and smoke nuisance. Several air quality assessments were conducted and it was found that the average upwind and downwind concentrations of PM2.5 reflected good air quality.
The EPA says it will continue to monitor four rice mills in Region Two. The four monitoring assessments were conducted for the first quarter of 2023 at the four rice mills. Further, EPA is working with all rice mills within the region to implement mitigation measures to combat their individual impacts.
The EPA team included Deputy Executive Director, Sharifah Razack; Head of Complaints and Emergency Response, Surjpaul Singh; Acting Head of Agriculture, Junior Toney; Legal Officer, Shareefah Parks; and Senior Environmental Officer Communications, Jomo Tobin. The team was in Region Two conducting an outreach and also held a public meeting with regional officials and councillors.
