Capital Trustees Board approves plan to move barns away from housing areas

TDT | Manama

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A proposal to move barns and animal-rearing sites out of housing areas in the Capital Governorate won approval from The Capital Trustees Board yesterday, as members endorsed a plan to shift such activity to serviced land away from homes.

The proposal, put forward by board member engineer Mohammed Tawfeeq Al Abbas, is meant to deal with the spread of barns and the keeping of animals and birds inside residential districts.

It aims to cut harm to public health, reduce noise and pollution, and make neighbourhoods cleaner and easier places to live.

Rules

It would also bring the keeping of animals and birds under planning and environmental rules, while giving breeders alternative sites where they can continue their work in lawful and safer conditions.

Members said the plan would cover all barns, slaughter sites and places used for keeping animals and birds within residential parts of the Capital Governorate, with densely populated areas taking priority.

The board discussed a scheme based on surveying and classifying existing sites, then choosing alternative land and preparing it with water, electricity, paved roads and sanitation. Those sites would be placed away from residential districts.

Transfer

The proposal also calls for a phased transfer, with a timetable for moving barns in stages and enough notice for breeders to sort out their status.

Technical and procedural support would be offered during the transition.

After the grace period ends, the plan calls for updated rules, stricter checks and heavier inspection drives, followed by legal penalties for those who fail to comply.

Consultations

The board also said local participation would be needed, calling for consultation meetings with residents and breeders to explain how the plan would work, as well as channels for complaints and suggestions.

Al Abbas said the move would help reduce smells, insects and pollution caused by animal waste.

He said it would also ease traffic linked to unregulated activity, raise property values, improve the look of residential areas and create a clearer, more orderly system for keeping animals.

Coordination

The board recommended that the proposal be adopted as a full executive plan, with coordination between the Ministry of Municipalities Affairs and Agriculture and the bodies concerned to carry it out and meet its aims within Bahrain’s sustainable urban development plans.