EPA gives Empire Cement 30 days to plan relocation from Densu Delta Ramsar area
The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) has given Empire Cement Ghana Limited 30 days to submit a comprehensive relocation plan for its cement grinding and bagging facility located near the environmentally sensitive Densu Delta Ramsar Site.
In a directive dated October 28, 2026, and signed by the EPA’s Chief Executive Officer, Prof. Nana Ama Browne Klutse, the Authority said a Closure Notice issued to the company on September 14, 2026, remained in force.
The EPA requires the company to submit a detailed relocation strategy and operational transition plan, including potential alternative industrial sites, implementation timelines, arrangements for the transition and measures to protect workers.
The directive follows years of regulatory concerns about the facility’s location, particularly its proximity to residential communities, Panbros Salt Industries Limited and the Densu Delta Ramsar Site.
According to the EPA, the concerns date back to June 2020, when it first directed the company to halt construction and identify an alternative site due to land-use incompatibility.
Subsequent environmental assessments, the Authority said, found that large-scale cement manufacturing was unsuitable for the area because of potential public health risks, flooding concerns and the movement of heavy-duty vehicles through surrounding communities.
Although Empire Cement obtained an Environmental Permit in October 2023, the permit required the company to submit a decommissioning plan and relocate before the permit expired.
The EPA said the permit conditions were varied in January 2024 following ministerial intervention. However, it maintained that the underlying concerns about public health, flood risks and heavy-vehicle traffic remained unresolved.
Petitions submitted by residents’ associations in the Weija-Gbawe area to the President and the Minister for Environment, Science and Technology also contributed to renewed calls for regulatory enforcement.
Under the latest directive, the EPA has invoked Section 35 of the Environmental Protection Act, 2025 (Act 1124), requiring Empire Cement to identify an alternative location within a designated industrial zone and obtain the necessary environmental and land-use approvals.
The company must also undertake the required environmental impact assessments and work with the EPA and relevant state institutions to establish an enforceable timetable for decommissioning the existing facility and rehabilitating the site.
Meanwhile, the Authority has directed Empire Cement to maintain the environmental safeguards and pollution-control measures required under its existing permit and the Closure Notice throughout the transition period.
The EPA warned that any unauthorised resumption of operations while the Closure Notice remains in force could attract sanctions under Act 1124.
