Ekiti State Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources has shut down a water factory (name withheld) in the Ekute Area of Ado-Ekiti, for violating the state’s health and safety regulations and using unsafe water source.

The state Commissioner for Environment and Natural Resources, Mrs Tosin Aluko-Ajisafe, in a statement made available to newsmen in Ado-Ekiti, explained that the enforcement was in line with the commitment of the state government to protect residents from unhygienic water consumption.

She stated that the factory was operating in an unhygienic environment and producing sachet water from unsafe water source.

 According to her, a team of environmental health officers from the Ministry made the discovery during a routine monitoring activity of neighbourhoods in the state capital, stressing that operators of the factory had been packaging water from an unsafe water source for public consumption and had been operating in an environment that failed to meet basic sanitary standards.

The team also discovered that the factory’s primary water source was located outside the premises. Upon investigation, it was found that the water source—disguised as a borehole—was in fact an unprotected and unhygienic surface well susceptible to contamination from surface runoff, animal droppings and other pollutants which can trigger outbreaks of waterborne diseases such as cholera and typhoid fever,” she added.

The Commissioner added that in response to these findings, an abatement notice was issued to the factory’s management after which the Ministry’s Task Force immediately sealed off the premises in order to protect public health.

While reaffirming the state government’s commitment to ensuring that all water production facilities in the state adhere strictly to health and safety regulations, Aluko-Ajisafe emphasised that the action was necessary to prevent the potential outbreak of communicable diseases.

“Our aim is not to close down factories or push them out of business, but to ensure that Nigerians consume wholesale and hygienic food and water”, she stated.

She members of the public to remain vigilant and report similar concerns to the appropriate authorities.