INSPECTION REVEALS 33 DANGEROUS
HOTSPOTS OF SOIL POLLUTION
The Ulaanbaatar Agency for Specialized Inspection recently conducted a probe into the activities of hide and leather factories operating in Ulaanbaatar and revealed 33 hotspots where soil had been polluted to “dangerous” levels.
“During the inspection, the factories had no environmental management planning and did not conduct a study on the environmental impact of their activities. The pollutants being released by the factories were not sufficiently accounted for and most did not dispose of harmful waste to the appropriate facilities,” said D.Bat-Ulzii, the Head of the Environment, Geology, and Mining Regulation Department at the inspection agency.
A total of 43 factories were inspected, with 25 directives sent out with a total of 10 million MNT in fines imposed.
The Ulaanbaatar Agency for Specialized Inspection collected samples from 340 sites near hide and leather factories and found that 114 sites had exceeded the recommended amount of pollutents, while 57 spots had harmful levels of pollutants, and 33 had dangerous levels.
D.Bat-Ulzii stressed the importance of inspecting further and collecting deep soil samples to determine the extent of the soil pollution caused by hide factories across Ulaanbaatar.
A recently approved law on the disposal of harmful substances state that a private entity bears the sole responsibility of disposing of harmful pollutants at a designated facility.
The Ulaanbaatar Agency for Specialized Inspection has stressed that it used its power to the full extent to oblige factories to cease polluting nearby areas. However, the agency reported that it was not able to demand a fine of 10 million MNT due to the law on the disposal of harmful substances not being fully approved. Specifically, the law does not specify how much fines can be imposed on a private entity.