The Environmental Protection Agency in Tema has organized a two days workshop for churches, restaurants and drinking spots on ambient noise level guidelines.
The workshop was to create a forum for engagement between EPA and key stakeholders to find lasting ways of addressing the problem of noise pollution.
Madam Irene Opoku, the Acting Head of EPA in Tema Region said the issue of noise has become a major problem that the EPA has been battling and there is the need to engage the various entities.
She said churches, pubs, and bars tend to generate some form of noise one way or the other and forget that it inconveniences each other, saying society by nature can accommodate some noise but when it goes beyond a certain time then people become agitated.
Madam Irene Opoku said the EPA’s intention is that, together, all would become conscious of the impact of excessive noise on our health, so that as individuals and communities we would take steps to minimize it to a very large extent.
“Some time ago we came out with the permissible noise guideline. We raised some awareness but still have not made the progress that we want to achieve. We have now moved it further into standards and very soon would become enforceable standards backed by regulation with some punitive measures,” she said.
“I believe that, if we are able to tackle it in our small groups, we would be able to achieve it. We expect that from here, we would take steps in our little small way to help address it,” she said.
She urged participants to become ambassadors for the environment and the people, saying if care is not taken, people would have hearing problems and difficulties in their old age.
Happyghana.com