The Ondo government has made a shocking discovery of illegal sand mining sites in the outskirts of Akure. The State’s Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) monitoring team caught some illegal miners red-handed in the early hours of Thursday. Oyeniyi Oseni, the special adviser to Governor Rotimi Akeredolu on environmental matters, led the SEPA team to the sites and expressed deep concern over the extensive damage done to the area. He warned the mining operatives that the government will no longer tolerate any deviation from existing regulations and operational guidelines. The state’s environmental protection agency team will be closely monitoring the activities of sand miners to enforce operational ethics and protocols in order to protect the environment, lives, and properties of the citizens. Mr Oseni also held a meeting with the leadership of associations involved in sand mining, including the Association of Sand Quarry Operators and Suppliers (ASQOSOS), Union of Tipper, Quarry Employee of Nigeria (UTQEN), and the Seriki Hausawa of Shasha market, Shehu Ibrahim Dangari. He urged the group to obtain the necessary permit from the agency and warned them to refrain from digging below the permissible level and always cover their sand-laden trucks.
