Akwa Ibom State Environmental Protection and Waste Management Agency (AKSEPWMA) has deployed sanitation marshals to enforce standards and reduce environmental infractions.
This followed a successful completion of a one-month intensive retraining programme on environmental standards, stewardship and sustainability.
The agency received a hundred personnel of Ibom Community Watch (IWC) to be retrained for the enforcement of environmental law in the State.
Akpan Ikim, chairman of the agency, who made this known, described it as a significant milestone, saying it was a step forward in enforcing environmental regulations and apprehending offenders who violate environmental law and waste handling standards.
He said the agency trained the marshals not only on environmental management best practices but also on basic character, discipline and public perception.
Ikim, who presented the marshals to the senior magistrate, Amanda Effiom said that in enforcing environmental standards as directed by the State governor, the role of the Court could not be overemphasized.
“The sanitation marshals will apprehend all defaulters of environmental standards including indiscriminate waste handling and disposal, waste disposal at unauthorized places/time, ” he said.
The magistrate, in his remarks, said every apprehended culprit would immediately appear before the Sanitation Court for prosecution.
Effiom expressed optimism upon receiving the Sanitation Marshals saying that environmental management in the State was repositioned for a positive transformation.
