Effluent Discharge Surrounds Community

Industrial pollution emission from manufacturing companies most especially tanneries in Sharada Industrial Estate of the Kano Municipal Council (KMC)local government area in continues to pose threat to lives of residence of this area. After many public outcries by residents of Sabuwar Gandu, Tukuntawa and other communities in both Kumbotso and KMC local government areas, the offensive  waste still encircled these communities.

It is in furtherance of their course that these communities stage a peaceful protest to Freedom House, the offices of Freedom Radio where they believed their outcries can be carried further and get attention from authorities concerned .  They described the effluent as full of harmful odors and hazardous to their health and environment.

"They described the effluent as full of harmful odors and hazardous to their health and environment."

Following the peaceful protest, Freedom Radio Investigates further:

Following the path of the industrial discharge, it was noted that about three separate streams converge into the flow that crosses and encircles these communities, and one of the streams' source was identified originating from Unique Leather Company.

Unique Leather Company
Investigations in an attempt to reach the roots of the effluent discharge particularly the one from Unique leather led us to the company where a member of the management team  conducted us around its effluent treatment plants. There was a Biological treatment plant for the treatment of solid wastes before discharging to the channel which the company uses to raise the quality of the water before discharge.

Further probing on the odor, the Senior Effluent Officer, Zakari Nuhu Lambo, revealed that odor treatment plant was installed last year due to public outcry. "We use activated bacteria so that it will reduce the odor as we receive too much complain from the community. We do this to reduce the sludge which will help us have a qualitative discharge from our plant."

Zakari further pointed out that the discharge from their company is treated but that it mixes with others from similar companies and that of the community and that the flow of the discharge stagnates along the route and that the stagnation of the water brings back the odour that the communities are complaining about.

B&B Leather Company
Efforts to meet the management of B&B Leather Company Industries, yet another one of the companies responsible for discharging effluent wastes proved abortive. We are told at the gate non of the management is available.

All being said and done, there is no sufficient concern from the authority charged with environmental control and their efforts are not yielding any positive impact on this regard

For how long this situation will continued?

b.b..