The Ogun state government has shut down an agro- processing company, Supreme Agro Limited in Igbesa, Ado Odo local government area for serious industrial pollution that have destroyed the ecosystem of its host community.
The action followed several complaints from the Igbesa community and subsequent verification and warnings by the Ogun State Environmental Task Force.
Speaking on the issue, the Commissioner for Environment, Ola Oresanya, said the company, despite their earlier denial was found guilty of industrial pollution as it discharges its untreated waste water into the community which has greatly affected the well-being of residents of the area.
The commissioner said rather than installing effluent plants that would contain the waste water and remove hazardous components before discharging them to surrounding water bodies, the company bye- passed the plant and discharges the waste water directly into the community which not only constitutes an eyesore but impacted negatively on the environment.
“This is a very selfish and callous behavior on the part of the company because these waste water have hazardous components such as heavy metals in them as well as carcinogenic materials and chemicals which when they get to the environment becomes injurious to the people leading to unwarranted deaths.
“The state government will not look away from such behavior which will impact negatively on the well-being of the host community,” Oresanya added.