The Ogun State Waste Management Authority has sealed off two Chinese companies, Yibao Industrial Limited and Ronchang Industrial Park, for violating environmental laws by failing to properly manage their waste. Yibao Industrial Limited is located at Bara Village along the Sagamu-Abeokuta Expressway, while Ronchang Industrial Park is situated opposite Julius Berger yard on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.
According to a statement from the authority on Sunday, the companies repeatedly ignored warnings and failed to engage accredited waste collectors to manage their waste, leading to improper disposal practices. The Managing Director of the Ogun State Waste Management Authority, Abayomi Hunye, led an enforcement team to shut down the companies’ operations.
Hunye stated that the companies’ actions violated Section 17 of the Ogun State Waste Management Law of 2020. He pointed out that both companies had been found guilty of using unaccredited waste collectors, which not only contravened the law but also exposed the public to potential health risks, including underground water contamination and foul odors from untreated waste.
“The essence of shutting them down is to ensure that they comply with the standard ways of managing wastes in the state,” Hunye said. He emphasized that the authority had given multiple notices and conducted inspections to counsel the companies on maintaining a clean environment and using government-approved waste collectors, but the companies remained non-compliant.
Hunye warned that the government would take similar actions against any company, whether Nigerian or foreign-owned, found guilty of such violations. “We have no alternative than to shut them down in the overriding public interest, as their behavior and action smack of gross disrespect to constituted authority,” he added.