Agency issues abatement notice against noise pollution in Abuja

The Director, Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB), Alhaji Kaka Ali, has issued a final abatement notice to the public, particularly, owners and operators of events centres, parks and gardens and other sundry facilities within the Federal Capital City and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

This is coming as a result of the alarming rate of noise pollution emanating from such quarters within the FCC, and the unending complaints received from neighbours and citizens residing in residential apartments in such vicinities.

The AEPB director, speaking through the Director Environmental Monitoring of the same agency, Mr Ezekiel Ope-Ojo, said: “We have been inundated with complaints of indiscriminate noise pollution from events centres, parks and gardens and other facilities within the FCC, in the last one year, and we can no longer tolerate it.

“We are stating in very strong terms that the nuisance of noise pollution contravenes both national regulations on acceptable noise levels on one hand and provisions of AEPB Act number 10 of 1997, on the other hand, which prohibits the making of noise in any way that disturbs the neighbourhood.

“This is not the first time we are issuing such notices to the public but it appears that some people have formed a habit of just ignoring such notices and just carry on as if such notices are not enough to make them regulate noise blaring from their speakers and other equipment.

“We have sensitized those identified to be involved in raising the noise level beyond the minimum standard in the past.

“This is why, we are issuing this final notice to them as a warning that subsequent contravening, will attract very stiff penalty in accordance to extant laws. Section 21 of AEPB Act 10 of 1997, states that any person who operates a grinding machine other than in an area designated for that purpose or plays music in a manner which constitutes a nuisance to neighbours or makes noise through the use of external bells, or loudspeakers in any premise which in the opinion of the board constitutes a nuisance or produces smoke or noise to a level dangerous to human health, is guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to make payment of a fine, imprisonment or a combination of both as the case may be.

“There is a minimum decibel set for residential areas by National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) which is 45, but then it is just a standard. If you are in a very quiet neighbourhood, you will definitely discover that the 45 is even still too high, and you will still be required to take it to lower so that neighbours don’t complain.”

Speaking about some of the reasons why noise pollution should be outlawed and the devastating effects it has on different categories of neighbours, which force them to bring their complaints to AEPB, Mr Ope-Ojo said, “noise pollution poses serious health risks, particularly those who are sick, recuperating at home or elderly and infant populations in the FCC. We have received complaints from people who have developed high blood pressure and migraine as a result of noise pollution from their neighbours.

“It is expected that after an individual or an organization has been served with an abatement notice, they will comply. However, after being served up to two or more notices, and a recalcitrant contravener refuses to comply, he or she or the organization is taken to court and prosecuted.

“The court could issue a directive to seal up the premises of the offender. We have in the past, also brought complainants and the person constituting the nuisance together for an amicable resolution. In some cases, it has worked. In some other cases, we have had to arrest the noise-making device, equipment, instrument or implement. Some of such confiscated materials are still in our custody.”

Mr Ope-Ojo further revealed that most of the noise pollution occur on weekends. “This is why we go out mostly every weekend to identify areas to monitor and check compliance,” he quipped.

He also hinted that AEPB does not get serious complaints from the suburbs as it gets from the FCC.

“Most of our operation takes place in the city centre where we are getting most of the complaints, but that does not mean that when we begin to get complaints from Area Councils, we will not do anything. We shall be liaising with the environmental officers of any area councils from which the complaints may be originating,” he stressed.

Mr Ope-Ojo described the complaint channel as a simple and straightforward one that any resident can easily follow to register their complaints formally.

According to him “all you need to do to register your complaint is to write a letter of complaints and address it to AEPB Director, the complaint will be sent to the Environmental Monitoring Department, whose duty is to monitor and control noise and other nuisance and handle such complaints.

“The enforcement team of AEPB works 24 hours daily. Anywhere there is a complaint, they go there to resolve it. When it becomes a bit too intractable for them, synergy with sister agencies such, as development control and others under the Abuja Metropolitan Management Councils and the Ministerial Enforcement Team, in a joint operation, gets the job done,” he confirmed.

 

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