Dr. Thani Ahmed Al-Zeyoudi, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, met with some of the UAE’s crusher and quarry operators at the Fujairah Culture and Media Authority in Dibba, Fujairah last Thursday.

The meeting is part of Dr. Al-Zeyoudi’s plans to conduct a series of visits to various parts of the country, aimed towards highlighting the Ministry’s commitment to continuously keep members of society apprised of with the current environmental concerns and ways they are addressing them.

During the meeting, Dr. Al-Zeyoudi presented the Ministry’s plan to develop and implement new federal legislation on proper evaluation of the efficiency of quarry and crusher facilities, which has been listed as one of the key priorities of UAE Vision 2021.

Dr. Al-Zeyoudi also discussed the Ministry's continuing efforts towards reinforcing environmental sustainability of these facilities, particularly in ensuring the health and safety of residents living in the vicinity of these areas; monitoring the sustainability of its operations, as well as providing and promoting the essential infrastructure needed to drive in economic growth.

"The Ministry of Climate Change and Environment remains committed in its efforts to work closely with all sectors in the move to promote economic growth, including local crushers and quarries. However, in order to become more effective and operative, these facilities should adhere to the standards, guidelines and legislation to prevent environmental impacts and ensure its continued sustainability. This comes in line with the UAE's wise leadership vision and efforts to achieve and maintain a clean environment, sustainable future and to provide all the resources to support economic development in the UAE," Minister Al-Zeyoudi stated.

During his visit which included various quarries and crusher sites, he checked on their operational requirements and their commitments to reduce emissions, operating purification filters, covering conveyor belting resource, running of water sprinklers during operations, loading materials and a review of all procedures and workflows aimed to promote and ensure health and safety.

The Ministry of Climate Change and Environment conducts regular inspections to assess compliance with environmental standards, guidelines, legislations and all practices related with all environmental sectors' duties. The process, which focuses on maintaining environmental sustainability, also includes holding regular training sessions to prepare a qualified staff that will be able to do on-the-spot field inspections according to global standards.

The inspections and visits also come in line with the Ministry’s continuing efforts to evaluate the facilities, authorities and their commitment to the laws and legislations. These efforts have been developed following the directives of the country’s wise leadership to achieve environmental sustainability, maintain the pace of innovation, promote the infrastructure in UAE.

They also help play a key role in the shift towards smart services, as shown in the Ministry’s initiative to use drones to help improve the inspection process on various environmental sectors including crushers and quarries.

Source:WAM