URBAN GROWTH, FUEL SERVICE STATION DISASTERS AND POLICY COMPLIANCE IN GHANA

Abstract

Disasters associated with Fuel service stations (FSS) in Ghana have been debated severally and attracted policy attention, yet their mitigation strategies seem too far off and unimaginably unrealistic. Knowing that such disasters can limit enjoyment of citizenship rights, Ghana has developed safety standards geared towards mitigating their effects. Framed around the compliance theory and drawing on data from 150 residential owners located within 15.4m buffer zone and five state institutions, this article examined the extent of compliance with safety policies guiding FSS in Kumasi, Ghana. The results showed that compliance with safety policies was sinking into its bare existential levels as none of the facilities selected for the study passed all the 11 safety standards. The facilities also negatively affected residents who never considered their place of abode as perilous and that they live in zones of vulnerabilities. This situation it is argued, fundamentally affects development trajectory of the contemporary African city. It obviously obscures the realities of interrelated processes shaping urban disaster management. Even though the spring-up of FSS have catapulted economic growth, inherently they are also hazard-ridden. We suggest that in the broad scheme of urban planning, FSS safety policies must not be discussed in the margins