JEDDAH — The Ministry of Agriculture has asked Jeddah Governor Prince Mishal Bin Majed to be included in the specialized committee tackling environmental hazards in the southern Jeddah area of Khumra, Makkah daily reported. Jeddah Municipality and Jeddah Police responded to the governor's order eight months ago by planning for a campaign to inspect the area and deal with any violations. The Ministry of Agriculture was, however, excluded from the plan and contacted the governor, who responded by asking the municipality why the government department was omitted. The specialized committee launched its first campaign recently to deal with the issue. The campaign was preceded by an inspection of the area in April that identified a number of violations. Companies would dump their waste in open land and barns in Khumra, forcing local workers to burn it. In turn, animals were scavenging carcasses dumped in the Ministry of Agriculture's quarries. All of these acts were considered harmful to the environment. A source from the municipality reported that the rectification campaign would go on for three days due to the large size of the area. So far, the committee has removed 400 sheep and camel barns due to the large amount of waste accumulating in them. The source added the campaign would also deal with any illegal expatriates who were found in the area. “The campaign aims to improve the general status of the area and we are starting with barns and livestock,” said the source.
