JEDDAH: Members of the National Society for Human Rights branch in Makkah region and environmental experts have criticized the lack of filters to eliminate odors from the Medical Materials Recycling Factory in eastern Jeddah and the lack of facilities to accommodate Jeddah's waste, which reaches 5,000 tons every day. Members of the NSHR and environmental experts, who paid two surprise visits to the Medical Materials Recycling Factory in eastern Jeddah and a nearby project for the treatment of solid waste, called for them to be moved from the urban area. They were of the view that the factories are violating people's right to live in clean and safe environment. Dr. Hussein Al-Shareef, supervisor of the NSHR branch in Makkah region and head of the delegation, said the situation requires speedy action by the Jeddah Mayoralty and other relevant authorities. “We will forward reports to the Makkah Governorate, the Jeddah Mayoralty and the General Presidency for Meteorology and the Environment,” he said. “We will communicate with experts to evaluate the situation and hold a symposium to shed light on the issue.” NSHR members, Dr. Hussein Al-Shareef, Dr. Omar Zuhair Hafiz, Talal Qusti, Ma'toug Al-Shareef, law researcher Faris Al-Ghamdi and accompanying experts first visited the Medical Materials Recycling Factory, where they checked as to how medical waste and expired medicine was treated. They were briefed on the factory's operations by the man in charge, Zuhair Ahmad, who agreed that the facility should be moved out of the urban area. He added, though, “The matter is in the hands of Jeddah Mayoralty and we are demanding that they provide an alternative location.” Society members listened to complaints from people who live near the factory and conveyed them to Ahmad. He explained to the residents, who had earlier contacted the NSHR regarding the issue, that the factory is not the source of the foul smell. “No odors are emitted from our factory and the government authorities know where the odors come from. These odors are caused by overstayers who burn tires and other materials.” Okaz/Saudi Gazette asked one of the environmental experts to share his views about the factory. “There is no full combustion of medical wastes and there are no filters,” he said. “The odors prove what we are saying.” He said there could be shortcomings in the way waste is incinerated. “The method they are using in burning the medical materials is strange,” he said. Ahmad explained to members of the Society that the factory receives supervisors from the Jeddah Mayoralty, Civil Defense and the General Presidency for Meteorology and the Environment and that the factory's operations are assessed by a specialist laboratory. “The materials produced after incineration are sent to the industrial dumping site in Jubail. Other medical waste is dumped in the Mayoralty's garbage dumping site.” Later, the team went to the municipality's neighboring project for dumping solid waste. They met with Salim Ahmad Basa'eed, the acting manager of the company operating. Basa'eed also agreed with the experts regarding the location of the company saying the project should be moved from the urban area. He said there is a need for covering the area where waste is dumped to prevent emission of odors. He said, though, there are issues with the contract as well. He explained that the covering of the area required investment of SR2 million and his company's contract with the mayoralty would expire in six years. Due to which, he said, his firm was reluctant in making further investments as it would affect its profit margin. “Our contract with the mayoralty stipulates that the company should benefit from 25 percent of the waste, but actually the company is benefiting only from 10 percent. The reason is that women scavengers rummaging through the garbage and sheds are illegally unloading the garbage and taking whatever they can benefit from before the waste is transported to the project. Whatever can be of benefit has already been taken away and the company incurs losses. With this loss, implementing this recommendation is ruled out.” “We get 300 tons out of 5,000 tons of garbage produced by Jeddah on a daily basis,” he said. After their tour, members of the National Society for Human Rights appealed to the Jeddah Mayoralty and relevant authorities to resolve the issue on an urgent basis.
