Minister of Environment takes the law into his own hands

We Jordanians tend to take the law into our own hands sometimes and that causes some social and political problems. The Minister of Environment Mr Khalid Irani is no exception, but by implementing the law personally he gives an example and leads a process of national enforcement of environmental law through the newsly-established environmental police department. The Jordan Times published an interesting story about the issue.

By Khalid Neimat
and Mohammad Ghazal

AMMAN — The recipient of the first ticket for violating environmental regulations was lucky enough to receive his JD20 fine from the environment minister himself.

Minister of Environment Khalid Irani was on the Amman-Mafraq highway on Sunday, when a driver threw a piece of litter from the window of his car; the minister stopped him and issued the ticket, a source at the Environment Ministry told The Jordan Times.

The source, who said Irani carries the ticket pad at all times, said the minister on the same day stopped an uncovered truck in Amman loaded with sand that was blowing into the streets.

The minister stopped the truck and fined the driver JD30, according to the source.

He added that the minister said his actions were in line with the duties of the new environmental police unit, of which the first class is expected to start operating mid-September.

The force of officers from the Public Security Department is tasked with handling offences related to air and water pollution, littering, tree cutting and illegal hunting.

They will also be responsible for inspecting factories, industrial zones, and picnic areas and fining violators of environmental laws.

The unit, which will eventually be comprised of some 1,000 officers, will be based at new headquarters near the capital’s Abdoun District.

Meanwhile, officials from the Ministry of Environment (MoE) on Tuesday shut down 21 industrial facilities due to environmental regulation violations.

MoE Secretary General Faris Jneidi said asphalt and cement factories were fined and shut down following infractions that affect the citizens’ safety, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Also this week, as part of its ecological conservation efforts, MoE announced it was developing the King Abdullah Award for Environment to encourage the industrial sector to abide by regulations.