EPA begins energy-saving programme in December
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will in December this year begin an energy saving installation project to help conserve energy.
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The project, which would be piloted in hotels and other manufacturing companies, would include the installation of energy saving bulbs, shadow sensors, energy saving key cards, biogas among other equipment that would reduce the cost of energy to between 30 to 40 per cent.
The Director of Standards, Compliance and Enforcement Division of the EPA, Mr Lambert Faabeleuo, said the energy saved would in turn be put back on the national grid to benefit industries and reduce the load shedding in the country.
Mr Faabeleuo made this known during the monthly meeting of the Greater Accra Regional Branch of the Ghana Hotels Association (GHA) in Accra.
In attendance were representatives of public agencies and institutions that regulate the operations of the hoteliers in the country, including the Ghana Tourism Authority, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Food and Drugs Authority, the Ghana Revenue Authority, the Ghana Tourism Federation (GHATOF) and metropolitan,municipal and district assemblies (MMDA's).
Waste to energy
Mr Faabeleuo said apart from the introduction of the energy saving equipment, waste collected in the hotels and manufacturing companies would be channeled into biogas.
"What is happening is that the waste collected are organic waste and if we are able to channel them into the biogas system,the hotels are going to generate the biogas itself which would be channeled into the kitchen to be used for cooking,"he said.
Train staff on safety measures
In his address, the Deputy Director, Fire Safety of the Ghana National Fire Service, Mr Paa Kwesi Adutwum, urged members of the association to train their staff on fire safety measures while making sure that their various facilities met the fire safety standards.
"You should have fire extinguishers, fire alarm and detection systems, and means of exit that will facilitate movement of people from hazardous places to safety", he said.
For his part, the Chairman of the Greater Accra Regional Branch of GHA, Dr Edward Ackah-Nyamike Jnr, lauded members for participating in the forum and contributing to discussions that would help solve the problems of the association.
"Love or hate them, these regulatory bodies have a legal mandate to ensure that we operate our hotels within the confines of the laws of Ghana," he said.