Dubai keeps pressure on factories to clean up
Environmental offences by factories in Dubai fell by 47 per cent in the first six months of this year compared with the same period last year.
Most were related to environmental permits and air pollution, according to Alia Al Harmoudi, director of the environmental department at Dubai Municipality.
She said the number of air pollution offences decreased by a quarter between January and June compared with last year, as the municipality introduced measures to monitor industries more closely.
“We have expanded the scope of the use of drones to include environmental monitoring and control in all industrial areas in the emirate, in addition to the development projects, to monitor and control any pollution cases emanating from industrial activities,” Ms Al Harmoudi said.
Environmental monitoring of the industrial and service sectors in the emirate has been intensified in response to the steady growth of the two sectors, she said.
Cement manufacturers are committed to installing air pollution monitors linked to the municipality’s air quality database, Ms Al Harmoudi said.
“All industrial plants that generate large quantities of air pollutants and odour elements from their operational processes have committed to install pollution and odour control units to ensure that they are in conformity with the permitted environmental parameters.”
For the protection and development of coastal zones and preservation of marine environment, Ms Al Harmoudi said that in the first half of the year, the department carried out 98 inspection visits to marine and coastal facilities and projects and 289 to sand drilling sites.
“With regard to the control of coastal activities and sources of marine pollution resulting from marine transport vehicles and facilities, the department conducted 154 inspection visits to floating restaurants in the first half of 2018. Coastal inspectors visited 18 berths, and carried out 802 monitoring and inspection visits to beaches and Deira port,” Ms Al Harmoudi said.
She said that 49 fishing and hunting premises were also inspected.