Accra, Oct.7,(Godwill Arthur-Mensah)—Extractive companies operating in parts of the world have been tasked to allocate funds towards protecting and rehabilitating the environment.
The move has become necessary because all the process of mining natural resources including, exploration, development, production and decommissioning often damage the environment.
The key pillars of the environment such as the land, water and air are often affected negatively by operations of extractive companies.
Mr. Deodatus Mfugale, the Director of Training Programmes of Journalists Environmental Association of Tanzania, made these observations at a capacity-building workshop for journalists drawn from Tanzania, Uganda and Ghana, in Accra, on Wednesday.
The other components of the environment that are affected by the operations of extractive companies include human beings, marine life, livestock and vegetation that depended on the environment for survival, he pointed out.
Mr. Mfugale charged journalists to always verify whether extractive firms are complying with international environmental best practices and terms of reference in the environmental and socio-economic impact assessment.
He entreated governments in countries that have natural resources to put in place the necessary legal framework before granting licenses to investors to exploit those resources, in order to safeguard the safety of the people.
Mr. Frederick Avornyo, a Communication Consultant at Penplusbytes and a resource person at the training workshop, tasked journalists to write on issues that are relevant to their audiences and concerned their welfare.
Mr. Sylvester Domasa Lugutu, a journalist with the Guardian newspaper in Tanzania and a participant at the training workshop, indicated that extractive companies must exercise maximum precaution in their operations so as to protect the environment from further damage.
He stressed the need for extractive firms to ensure full participation of the people during the environmental impact assessment (EIA) public hearings, in order to solicit their inputs into the EIA.
In addition, he said, the contributions from civil society organizations, experts, regulators and other relevant institutions should be factored into the EIA to ensure a holistic document.
“An independent agency must monitor the extractive industries to ascertain whether they are implementing and complying with the EIA document”, he opined.
The training programme was organized by the Natural Resource Governance Institute in partnership with African Centre for Media Excellence, aimed at enhancing the knowledge and understanding of journalists in the three countries on the extractive sector.
END
The move has become necessary because all the process of mining natural resources including, exploration, development, production and decommissioning often damage the environment.
The key pillars of the environment such as the land, water and air are often affected negatively by operations of extractive companies.
Mr. Deodatus Mfugale, the Director of Training Programmes of Journalists Environmental Association of Tanzania, made these observations at a capacity-building workshop for journalists drawn from Tanzania, Uganda and Ghana, in Accra, on Wednesday.
The other components of the environment that are affected by the operations of extractive companies include human beings, marine life, livestock and vegetation that depended on the environment for survival, he pointed out.
Mr. Mfugale charged journalists to always verify whether extractive firms are complying with international environmental best practices and terms of reference in the environmental and socio-economic impact assessment.
He entreated governments in countries that have natural resources to put in place the necessary legal framework before granting licenses to investors to exploit those resources, in order to safeguard the safety of the people.
Mr. Frederick Avornyo, a Communication Consultant at Penplusbytes and a resource person at the training workshop, tasked journalists to write on issues that are relevant to their audiences and concerned their welfare.
Mr. Sylvester Domasa Lugutu, a journalist with the Guardian newspaper in Tanzania and a participant at the training workshop, indicated that extractive companies must exercise maximum precaution in their operations so as to protect the environment from further damage.
He stressed the need for extractive firms to ensure full participation of the people during the environmental impact assessment (EIA) public hearings, in order to solicit their inputs into the EIA.
In addition, he said, the contributions from civil society organizations, experts, regulators and other relevant institutions should be factored into the EIA to ensure a holistic document.
“An independent agency must monitor the extractive industries to ascertain whether they are implementing and complying with the EIA document”, he opined.
The training programme was organized by the Natural Resource Governance Institute in partnership with African Centre for Media Excellence, aimed at enhancing the knowledge and understanding of journalists in the three countries on the extractive sector.
END
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