DOHA: The Ministry of Municipality and Environment’s agricultural quarantine offices have inspected 5,586 imported consignment, weighing more than 83,071 tonnes last month.

The inspected consignments included agricultural products. The quarantine offices also destroyed 82 consignments weighing over 95 tonnes for violating the agricultural quarantine law and some other damages, the Ministry said on its official Facebook account.

The agricultural quarantine is a first line of defence for protection from agricultural infections.

The preventive procedure aims to protect the country’s agricultural wealth from foreign-originated pests.

It also ensures that all plants, agricultural products and any other materials shall be subject to phytosanitary regulations for its procedures and to ensure that other agricultural production inputs are in conformity with the set conditions and specifications.

Meanwhile, the Ministry has confirmed its keenness on planting trees specially AL Ghaf tree as part of its efforts to preserve the environment. Regarding the issue of rumors claiming that the Ministry of Municipality and Environment has removed a number of Al Ghaf trees at Umm Salal Municipality, the ministry clarified about the removal saying that the ministry had in fact moved those trees from the site opposite the North Police Station and replanted them in other areas in the same municipality.  It also added:

“The move of these trees was based on demand from authorities concerned because of some construction projects are going on at that place.”

The Ministry said that it appreciated the efforts of civil society organizations in the field of the environment, which are complementary efforts to the role of ministries and governmental institutions in the country. It also expressed hope that those institutions which wanted to carry out plating campaigns should coordinate with the concerned authorities in the Ministry of Municipality and Environment in carrying out environmental efforts, especially the one relating to planting trees.