Coastal and marine regulations bill coming

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has revealed that it is developing a Coastal and Marine Habitat Management Regulation to protect, enhance and restore the quality of coastal zones in Ghana.

Chief Programme Officer of the Natural Resources Department of the EPA, Jewel Kudjawu, said the regulations will promote and secure the sustainable development of beaches, lagoons, estuaries and breeding grounds for fish, and essential component of protein in diets.

The coastal zone regulations will be submitted to the Attorney General's Department for a fresh bill to be laid before Parliament.

Speaking to Class FM's Jerry Akornor, after an in-house training for journalists in the Ga West Municipality, Ms Kudjawu said passage of the Coastal and Marine Habitat Management Bill into law will stop activities that destroy coastal zones.

"There's the need for us to protect sensitive habitats within marine and coastal areas. As a result we are developing Coastal and Marine Habitat Management Regulations...so far with the draft in place, we have identified about six habitats to regulate such as estuaries, rocky areas, lagoon, beaches, mangroves and others,” she said.

Meanwhile, a climate change expert and former Director of Operations at EPA, Dr George Manful, wants Ghana to devise ways to overcome environmental hazards that pose a threat to human lives and property so they do not escalate into unmanageable proportions.

According to the former United Nations senior climate change advisor, the capacity to adjust to climate change for beneficial opportunities remains Africa's biggest challenge and must be tackled head-on.

Contributing to discussions at the event, acting Executive Director of the EPA, Mr John Pwamang, indicated that journalists should be adequately equipped on environmental issues to enable them to intensify education of the public.