Dust Particles from Cement Plant Below Regulatory Limit –Manufacturer

Lafarge Africa Plc has said that the cement dust particles emanating from its Ewekoro plant in Ogun State are below the regulatory limit.

The firm’s Head of Corporate Communication, Ginikanwa Frank-Durugbor, disclosed this in a statement on Friday while reacting to an exclusive story published by PUNCH Metro.

In the report published on Friday, some residents of the community had alleged that the dust emission from the plant put them at health risk.

Reacting, Frank-Durugbor said the firm was aware of the environmental impact of its operations on its host communities, which prompted the company to embark on actions to reduce dust emissions.

She said: “We are fully aware of the environmental impact of our operations, particularly on our host communities. As such, we carried out a comprehensive social impact assessment in Ewekoro in the year 2020, resulting in a robust action plan to reduce dust emissions.

“The implementation of the action plan involved changing the Electrostatic Precipitator used at the plant to a bag house filter, in addition to other significant adjustments to our production activities, over six months. A robust maintenance system was also put in place for the dust control equipment at the plant.

“The dust emission at our plant has since remained below the regulatory limit of 50mg/Nm3. The emission levels are also monitored in real-time, to ensure that it remains within acceptable limits, and validated by the National Environmental Standard and Regulations Agency during its periodic monitoring inspection of the Plant. Quarterly monitoring exercises by government accredited agencies are also conducted at the Plant, and the reports of the inspection are submitted to our regulators.”

She noted that the organisation prioritised the health and safety of people while carrying out its operations and it also maintained cordial relationships with the host communities through several intervention programmes made available to the communities.

“Lafarge maintains a good relationship with its host communities, and as part of our corporate social responsibility, we provide annual medical examination and treatment, including medications, medicated glasses, wheelchairs etc. to support the life and health of community members,” she concluded.