RAK residents call for high-emission quarries to be closed down

Residents living close to quarries and industrial areas have asked that strict monitoring be extended to factories, particularly those with heavy emissions such as cement plants.

Residents in Ras Al Khaimah have called for quarries, crushers and factories that violate environmental laws regarding emissions to be closed down.

The call comes after the Ministry of Environment and Water announced drones would be used to monitor quarries to check for violations that could impact the surrounding environment.

However, residents living close to quarries and industrial areas have asked that such strict monitoring be extended to factories, particularly those with heavy emissions such as cement plants.

Abdullah Al Qaidi, from Kadra, said that the Ministry’s new surveillance and control methods will only be affective if strict measures are taken against quarries where emissions exceed the set limits.

Nasser Al Tenaiji, from Al Rams, welcomed the use of drones, especially with what he said was an increase in violations by some quarries and crushers and non-compliance with standards. He said the current control process is insufficient to monitor violations, reported Al Ittihad, the Arabic language sister paper of The National.

The RAK Environment Protection Authority explained that all quarries are obligated to install air monitoring stations linked to a control centre based at the authority’s headquarters.