BURAIDAH, 13 August 2007 — Al-Asyah Municipality has rejected a proposal by the Al-Qasim Cement Company to build a new gypsum plant in the Al-Asyah area saying that the proposed plant is too close to residential areas and may cause health problems to local residents.
“We have voted unanimously against granting the company a license to build its gypsum plant for health and environmental reasons,” a source from Al-Asyah Municipal Council said. “The proposed factory is very close to residential areas and dust problems usually associated with gypsum and cement manufacturing plants may cause havoc,” he added.
The giant cement factory in the Central Region has already applied for a license from the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources to build the new plant. A representative of the company told Arab News after the meeting, “This does not prevent the company from completing the procedure of obtaining the permit using mining investment regulations, which allows industrial institutions to exploit lands needed in utilizing raw material.”
He added, “The company has a good record of complying with environmental regulations and will observe all the health and environmental conditions required by Saudi mining regulations or the Al-Asyah Municipality.”
However, the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources is ultimately the body with the final word in whether the plant may be established or not. “If precautions and preventive measures are taken to ensure the safety of water resources and the environment, then it is legal to establish the plant,” said Husain Aazeb and Basheer Al-Maghrabi, the two Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources representatives, who were part of a committee studying the company’s request.
The committee included representatives of various governmental sectors, including the Ministry of Water and Electricity, the Presidency of Meteorology and Environment, the Ministry of Agriculture, the Qasim Department for Archaeology and Museums, the Supreme Commission for Tourism and the Al-Asyah Municipality. The final decision is yet to be taken.
Al-Asyah citizens voiced concerns that the company will eventually get their license to build the gypsum plant. “We are already suffering from the dust coming from the chimneys of concrete breakers spreading all over the Al-Asyah region,” said Fahd Al-Zaid, a citizen of Al-Asyah. “This plant, if established, will certainly have a negative effect on our region,” he added.
