An agreement aimed at regulating operations of sugarmills in Honduras in order to prevent pollution entered into force this month. The Environment Ministry and the Sugar Producers Association are thus seeking to eliminate discharge of solid waste into the rivers around the sugarcane plantations and to control burnings in order to reduce smoke, following a month of intense haze and air contamination in the country.

The accord includes the application of clean, healthy and safe technology at all stages of sugar processing, Environment Minister Patricia Panting told Tierramérica. Honduras produces six million sacks of sugar annually, of which four million are exported.

Burnings of sugarcane plantations are among the main causes of pollution in Honduras, alongside forest fires, the emission of gases from vehicles and industry, and the accumulation of solid waste in rivers.