On Thursday, 10th of September, while speaking at a virtual forum entitled “Conservations with Nature” Dr Nnimmo Bassey an environmentalist said that the adverse effects of climate change which includes floods, rising temperatures and drought, are as a result of the abuse of the rights of nature. He described climate change as nature’s way of reacting to human activities that distort it’s dynamics and balance.
The Executive Durector, Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF) Dr. Bassey further attributed the current climate crisis to the dependence on fossil fuels.
He stated that several years of destructive human activities in the extractive industry has been resiliently endured by nature.
The industry in it’s quest for fossil fuel constantly emit green house gasses that harm the ecosystem.
The conversation was cohosted by Dr. Bassey who holds a national honour of Member of Order of Federal Republic for Environmental Activism and Mfonsio Antia, Lead, Ikike Desk, the learning organ of HOMEF
The environmentalist adviced that diversifying the energy sources and shifting away from fossils hold the key to solving the problems of global warming, distorted global ecology, and so on.
Dr. Bassey further enunciated on the subject saying:
“The world has carried on as if there is just one source of energy. Beyond fossils, there are so many sources of energy that do not destroy natural resources and they are renewables”
“To get out the climate crisis starring the world in the face, we need to switch to renewable energy sources and stop ecologically destructive activities”
“We need to go back to ‘Eti Uwem’ which stands for the good life in Ibibio language. It encompass communal and cooperative living as opposed to individualism” he added
“From recent developments and lessons learned from COVID-19 pandemic, we have to come to realise that we are all interconnected and hence the need to reverse the extractive paradigms that destroy natural biodiversity” he explained.
World leaders were exhorted by the environmentalist to end gas flaring so as to put an end to the emission of toxic chemicals into the atmosphere.
The forum, an initiative of HOMEF’s school of Ecology, drew participants from the group’s volunteers in all states of the federation and outside the country.
About 200 critically endangered Niger Delta red colobus monkeys are beneficiaries of a rare collaboration between a community and a conservation organization. This population of the monkey species is likely the most viable left in the world.
The Apoi community of Bayelsa
State and the Southwest Niger Delta Forest Project of the Foundation for
Sustainability of Ecosystem, Wildlife and Climate (FOSEC) joined hands to establish a new 1,000-hectare (2,741-acre) community conservancy in the
Apoi Creek Forest.
The conservancy will be jointly managed
by the Apoi community and SW/Niger Delta Forest Project, which has been working
there for seven years before a formal Memorandum of Understanding was signed recently.
This community-based conservation effort is key to the survival of the species,
which is one of the 25 most endangered primates in the world. About three groups
of the monkey have territories in the conservancy.
The MOU between SW/Niger Delta Forest Project and community leaders was signed on September 27. Chief Vinmarh G. Fietabara, chairman of the Council of Chiefs; Mr. Edu Kemeghesuotei, chairman of the Apoi Community Development Committee (CDC) and Mr. Godday S. Awudu, Apoi youth president, all signed the agreement and the entire Apoi community—all of its members—attended the signing ceremony, as well as some members of neighboring communities that share boundaries with the new conservancy.
Director of SWNiger Delta Forest Project, Rachael Ikemeh Ashegbofe and Chairman, Apoi Council of Chiefs, Chief Vinmarh G. Fietabara shaking hands after signing the MOU on conservancy creation and management
Director of SW/Niger Delta Forest
Project, Rachel Ashegbofe Ikemeh said the presence of the endemic Niger Delta
red colobus monkey known locally as the “epieni”
was an important factor in the recognition of the forest as a wetland of
international importance under the Ramsar Convention in 2008.
“Recent surveys provided evidence
that this forest remains key to the continued survival of the remnant
population of the Niger Delta red colobus monkey,” she added.
Niger Delta red colobus monkeys
only live in a dense swamp forest that is extremely difficult to navigate, the
species was only discovered and described by science in 1993. Researchers with
SW/Niger Delta Forest Project can only reach the forests in dug-out canoes and
wading through murky waist-deep water.
In the 1990s researchers estimated that the species population in the forests was about 10,000. However, the population is currently down to a mere 500 individuals living scattered across an extremely small area. The monkeys’ current range is estimated to be between 200 and 78 square kilometers from a known historical range of 1,500 square kilometers.
Lack of adequate wildlife protection laws, indiscriminate logging, hunting and oil extraction in the species habitat are a few of the reasons behind its decline. The new Apoi community bylaws are the first-ever protections for the Niger Delta red colobus.
The SW/Niger Delta Forest Project
and the Apoi community are developing a five-year management plan, which will
establish formal protection for Niger Delta red colobus, improve land-use
planning, adopt sustainable livelihood initiatives for the local community and
improve the quality of the marsh forest. The Apoi community has already begun
enacting and implementing new bylaws and efforts to demarcate the boundaries of
the conservancy are underway.
The community conservancy is only the second-ever created in Nigeria.
The organization is taking a
community-based approach to this conservation effort which establishes formal
protection for the species while also supporting community partners to improve
land use planning, adopt sustainable livelihood practices and improve the
quality of marsh forest habitat through an all-inclusive management approach to
ensure benefits to both biodiversity and the community.
“We have a really strong partnership and have developed a solid relationship over the last 6 to 7 years, thanks to the continued presence of our team on the ground and the persistent efforts of our project director, so I believe we will tactfully surmount any challenges we may encounter,” said Kosipre Williams, a field officer for SW/Niger Delta Forest Project.
Since 2013, the SW/Niger Delta
Forest Project has monitored two populations of Niger Delta red colobus monkeys
in Apoi Creek Forest and Kolotoro-Ongoloba Forest, overlapping Azagbene, Azama
and Aleibiri territories. It has also pushed for local, state and international
intervention to help the Niger Delta red colobus, which is on the brink of
extinction.
“What Rachel and her team have
accomplished, working in close collaboration with the Apoi Community, is truly
remarkable, especially when one considers that the Niger Delta region is one of
the most complicated and often dangerous regions to work in all of Africa,”
said Russ Mittermeier, chief conservation officer for Global Wildlife
Conservation. “This species is one of the highest priorities in our soon to be
published Red Colobus Action Plan, covering all the species of this most
endangered African primate genus.”
The SW/Niger Delta Forest Project has worked closely with the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s SSC Primate Specialist Group and The Red Colobus Conservation Network and is supported by the Rainforest Trust, Margot Marsh Biodiversity Foundation, Mohammed Bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund, GWC’s Primate Action Fund, Primate Conservation Inc., National Geographic Society and other philanthropies.
The Sahara desert is moving towards the South at the rate of about 0.6 kilometres per year. The result is that many lands that were formally good for planting and supporting diverse forms of agricultural and food production activities can no longer continue such support.
Nigeria is sorely affected by this losing about 35000 hectares of land annually in states to the north of the country like Adamawa, Bauchi, Gombe, Kebbi, Yobe and Zamfara.
One of the efforts by governments to beat the rapid desertification and also boost food security while supporting the mist affected communities’ adaptation to climate change is the Great Green Wall.
Recently, the government of Nigeria reiterated its commitment to tackle desert encroachment in the country during the official flag-off of training for youths and women on various skills, under the National Agency for the Great Green Wall.
At the event which took place in Kano, the Minister of Environment, Mohammad Mahmud said his ministry is working towards ensuring that desert encroachment is completely addressed.
Mahmud noted that the National Agency for the Great Green Wall (GGW) is a collaboration of eleven African countries aimed at planting enough trees to curtail desert encroachment.
He added that part of GGW activities includes youth empowerment, which is aimed at improving the livelihood of the people.
According to the Permanent Secretary, Kano State Ministry of Environment, Alhaji Garba Saleh the state is working on distributing two million tree-seedlings to farmers and households in the state to plant as their own contribution to the fight against desertification.
Statesmen and people who served a country at some of the highest possible levels deserve honour both when they are alive and when they are dead. This is one of the reasons behind the call from Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohaneze Ndigbo for an urgent attention to the environmental problems in Oko, Nanka and Agulu in Orumba North Local Government Area of Anambra State.
The country home of former Vice President of Nigeria, the late Dr Alex Ekwueme is located in Oko. The town is plagued with gully erosion believed to be as deep as the Grand canyon.
The country home of former Vice President of Nigeria, the late Dr Alex Ekwueme is located in Oko.
On Thursday, the Ohaneze Ndigbo appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari through the Federal Ministry of Environment attend to the situation before it will get out of hand, considering the huge contributions the late Icon has made to keep Nigeria as one.
Read also: Stepping Up Climate Action for a Resilient Africa
A letter titled “Save Us From The Ravaging Gully Erosion in Ekwueme’s home” addressed to President Buhar contained the appeal.
“The communities of Oko, Nanka and Agulu are constrained to notify you of the grave situation and the havoc being unleashed on the affected communities by the erosion menace, which has continued to escalate, resulting in loss of lives, households and threatening the existence, especially for the poorest people in the three communities,” the letter signed by Chief Demian Okeke Ogene, Anambra State chairman of Ohaneze Ndigbo read.
In the past, representatives of the Nigeria Erosion and Watershed Management Project (NEWMAP), under the Federal Ministry Environment have paid visits to the three communities and mobilised the people to support their preliminary works like engineering design, survey, resettlement plan and environmental impact assignment. They sensitised the people on how they can help to stop erosion and how they can relate with the contractors when they eventually start work. The copies of the studies are still with the community leaders after approval by Anambra State Government, Federal Government of Nigeria and the World Bank.
But work is yet to be commenced on the affected site.
“The rate at which the erosion is ravaging is better imagined than seen. You might be surprised that since NEWMAP visited last year, more houses have caved in to the deep abyss of the dreaded gully,” Ogene said.
To avoid dishonouring the memory of the late vice president and “because of the country’s reputation in the eyes of the World Bank, Ogene appealed to the president to act fast before the rainy season.
The Conservator General, National Park Service, Ibrahim Goni, has said Nigerians must have behavioural change towards wildlife to curb avoidable diseases in our country.
The Conservator General gave the charge on Tuesday, while underlining the dangers posed by hunting, eating and trading in, wildlife, and also warned about using wild animals as pets.
“We got reports that people still eat and sell various species of dead monkeys, cats, and birds such as bats, as well as pangolins suspected to be at the center of COVID-19.
“Pangolin, the world’s most trafficked mammal is believed to have possibly been a vector in the leap of the novel coronavirus from animal to human at a market in China’s Wuhan city last year.
“They are commonly used in traditional Chinese medicine, although scientists say they have no therapeutic value, he said.
The CG said that this pandemic should make hunters of wildlife to consider the health not just of humans, but of animals and the environment, to avert future crises.
“Due to hunting, eating and trading in wildlife, the world has seen the emergence of all sorts of animal- borne infectious diseases such as SARS, Ebola, Lassa Fever, and now, COVID-19.
“At our parks we have experts who handle these animals in hygienic ways to avoid direct human contact that can become breeding grounds for existing and emerging infectious diseases.
He said that the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc globally and Nigeria is not left out and wondered why some people still engage in a trade that supposedly brought the new disease upon mankind.
“One of the frightening realities of this trade is the threat that it poses to the health of human beings, through the spread of diseases from animals to human beings.
“Wildlife belongs to the wild and therefore should be left in the wild, Goni said.
He called for a paradigm shift in behavior of the public towards Nigeria’s Environmental Laws and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).
He added that 75 percent of emerging infectious diseases are linked to wildlife and that underscored the mutually-effective relationship between human beings and nature.
“It is important we understand the links between habitat and environmental damage and the coronavirus.
“The destruction of ecosystems makes disease outbreaks, including pandemics, more likely and now the destruction of nature is the underlying crisis behind the coronavirus crisis.
“Our Wildlife is increasingly going into extinction and its trade puts ecosystems at risk.
He said the Service will continue to create awareness on the impact of hunting and trading on biodiversity and the risks that it poses to human health.
“We urge those involved in wildlife trade to stop the killing and eating of wildlife, for their own good.
“Wild animals belong in the wild and are not pets and should be handled by professionals,’’ he warned.
In many vulnerable regions of the world, the climate crisis has exacerbated loss of farmable land and increased water scarcity, fueling rural-urban migration, civil unrest, and violence. As a result, worsening geopolitical instability has aided the rise of terrorism and violence in the Middle East, Guatemala, and the Lake Chad Basin of Africa. Yet when people hear the words, “global warming,” they typically don’t think of terrorism. If they did, politicians would be far more likely to undertake drastic action to address the climate crisis.
Syria after 2011 is one example of how the climate crisis multiplied existing threats. Water scarcity, which had been worsening over the years, contributed significantly to the outbreak of conflict. The increased death of livestock, reduced arable land, and rise in food insecurity made it significantly easier for the terror organization calling itself the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) to locally recruit over two thirds of its fighters. Extreme weather phenomena offered ripe opportunities for ISIS to increase support among locals. When a vicious drought swept through Iraq in 2010, ISIS distributed food baskets to local inhabitants. When high winds destroyed vegetation in 2012, ISIS handed out cash to affected farmers. By offering a source of income and opportunity for people when their livelihoods were destroyed by droughts and other extreme weather, ISIS was able to cultivate support and draw members from local populations. In other words, the climate crisis increased geopolitical instability and aided the growth of terrorism.
The US is vehemently opposed to terrorism as a matter of national security. According to the Pew Research Center, in early 2018, over three-quarters of American adults believed terrorism should be a top policy priority for the government, the highest of any given option. Over 46 percent of American adults favored increasing spending on anti-terrorism defenses, though the US military budget is already larger than the next seven highest-spending countries combined. The same survey showed that less than half of American adults believed climate change should be a top policy priority, ranking the second lowest of given issues.
Most Americans see “global warming” as an environmental, scientific, and political issue. Over half of Americans do not see it as a national security issue. While it is informative to present the climate crisis primarily through scientific data on global temperatures, atmospheric carbon concentration, and emissions levels, it does not galvanize people to action nearly as much as characterizing it as a matter of immediate national security. Doing the latter would make it a much higher priority for people in power.
The U.S. military already quietly recognizes climate change as a matter of national security, in part because it sparks conflict and unrest in other countries. In order to conceptually link the climate crisis to national security for the broader public, climate activists should expand and increase rhetorical focus on how the climate crisis worsens migration, foments geopolitical instability, and thereby aids terrorist organizations. Presenting the climate crisis in security-centric concerns and consequences ensures that all Americans — including right-leaning voters and people who would not be swayed by conventional appeals to ecological conservation or species preservation — become aware of how consequential it is. Security-centric framing would also help to shift the tone of climate activism toward addressing immediate threats, rather than simply encouraging global cooperation for the sake of future generations.
Reorienting climate rhetoric around national security also brings the action to a level that feels more achievable — at the national rather than global level. Whereas preserving the planet for future generations sounds aspirational and spiritually uplifting, it is an intrinsically international goal that calls upon many countries to work together for success. Framing plans to deal with the climate crisis in a way that requires concerted goodwill tends to encourage cynicism and blame-shifting when countries fail to meet carbon emission reduction targets. The vast majority of countries are failing to lower emissions to levels that would keep global warming below 2 degrees Celsius, as the 2015 Paris Agreement aspires to do. This collective failure dissipates blame and often disincentivizes countries from shouldering the burdens of emission reduction. Furthermore, focusing overtly on country-level climate reduction targets conceals the fact that emissions are largely generated by a handful of international corporations — over a third of all carbon and methane emissions since 1965 have been produced by 20 companies, including Saudi Aramco, Chevron, Exxon Mobil, and Royal Dutch Shell.
Holding corporations accountable for emissions requires immense political momentum, which is more easily galvanized by framing climate action as a necessary defense against immediate danger than as a voluntary restriction of certain economic activities for global well-being. While global cooperation to reduce emissions is what the international community should strive for, using nation-centered rhetoric that focuses on security threats can be an effective conduit to achieving this broader goal. Furthermore, linking the climate crisis to terrorism could increase the motivation and capital for countries to press hard in climate negotiations; in the face of immediate danger, the inertia of other countries or companies seems a paltry excuse for inaction.
The Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency says it is set to ban all single-use plastics within its premises from January 13, 2020.
General Manager, LASEPA, Dr Dolapo Fasawe, said in a statement on Friday, that the move was to protect the environment and encourage eco-friendly products.
Fasawe said that there was the need for suitable and multiple use alternatives to prevent pollution and avoid disposal problems.
“As the environmental police of the state, LASEPA should set good record for others to emulate, hence, the reason why we are using our facilities as pilot scheme to drive home our zero plastic waste campaign and its attendant effects on human health and the environment
This move would later be extended for wider implementation in all government premises and the state.
“To achieve the objective of the campaign, all staff and visitors to LASEPA premises are enjoined to support and comply with this holistic directive.
“The agency will be providing multiple use cloth bags to all staff within the first week of implementation to substitute old unfriendly materials, after which same bags can be purchased at the agency’s reception at a minimal fee,” she said.
According to her, single-use plastics represent the epitome of throwaway culture that ends up in landfills, oceans, waterways and the environment, which causes environmental and health hazards.
Fasawe said that replacements such as cloth (cotton) or reusable bags, paper bags, among others can be used several times and naturally decomposes in the environment.
She said that they also guide against dirtiness, flooding, drainage blockade as well as soil and water contamination.
The general manager, therefore, called for societal change against the use of single-use materials.
She urged corporate organisations, companies and industries to embrace the new holistic approach.
Fasawe said they could do so by using recyclable and reusable materials that were cost effective, environmentally friendly and devoid of environmental nuisances and pollution.
She said that the pilot scheme would serve as a blueprint and guide toward government policy on total ban on single-use plastic.
Environmentalists have called on the Federal Government of Nigeria to rise up to its responsibility of tackling environmental challenges in the country in order to leave a sustainable environment for future generations to inherit.
The Environmentalists made this submission while commenting on the haphazard approach of the government to the worsening impact of climate change on the people in 2019.
Nigerian environment is still faced with the debacle of oil spills in the Niger/Delta, unending desertification, losses of natural habitat and flooding.
In addition, the menaces of plastic and air pollutions, blockage of drainages, illegal tree felling, beach/gully erosion, droughts, loss of biodiversity and illegal wildlife trade and food shortages, escalate environmental problems in urban and rural areas.
Nigerians were warned of impending floods, but neither the government nor the people did something substantial to mitigate the impacts.
Unfortunately, floods displaced hundreds of Nigerians and climate change effects worsen. There were weeks of pounding rains last year, which swamped major cities, leaving homes and facilities isolated by floodwater. As the floods stay weeks even months to recede, some buildings become weakened and exposed to the weather.
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), there were reports of such instances in Lagos, Abuja, Ondo, and Kogi.
Arising from high-water levels in rivers Niger and Benue and heavy rainfall, Cross River, Kogi, Niger, and the Taraba States also experienced flooding.
The floods were widespread with the worst impact on some specific states within the six geo-political zones in Nigeria; North West (five states), North Central (seven states), North East (five states), South East (five states), South-South (five states) in South West (four states) totaling 32 states severely affected out of 36 states of Nigeria and FCT.
Within the year, Nigeria experienced a high level of climate-induced hotness of weather, refugees, and migrations. Many were internally displaced while others seeking to escape the clutches of the disaster, lost their lives in the Sahara Desert or in the Mediterranean Sea.
Based on the flood reports, North-East Nigeria (Adamawa, Borno, and Yobe) have had a total of 21,056 households (HH) residing in IDPs camps and host communities affected by the floods; Adamawa (5,454 HH), Borno (10,757 HH) and Yobe (4,845 HH). There have been joint area-based needs assessments and emergency response actions, with support provided by various aid agencies to 2,360 HHs.
Environmentalists also observed the shrinkage of Lake Chad and the attendant reduction from a size of over 25,000 square kilometres in the 1960s, to a measure of 2,500 square kilometres today.
70 to 80 per cent of Nigerian original forests have disappeared through logging, agriculture, city and road expansion as well as building of industry. This has led to the loss of plants and animals which depend on these forests. With the expected consequences of climate change, these losses are expected to increase what caught the attention of the world towards the end of 2019 were the discussions and efforts to resolve a split between rich and poor nations over climate funding and cooperation rules through the UN COP 25 climate conference talks which deadlocked in Madrid. Many delegates said they were “disappointed” by weak commitments to climate protection globally.
In the course of the year, Nigeria undertook a second issuance; a Series II Green Bond of up to N15 billion following the successful debut of green bond issuance of N10.69 billion in December 2017 – by which Nigeria became the first African country to issue a green bond.
The Nigerian Debt Management Office noted that the Series II Green Bond issuance is a further demonstration of the government’s commitment to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 20 per cent by 2030, as outlined under the Paris Agreement signed on September 21, 2016.
Experts laud the initiative saying that the distinct characteristic of a green bond is that the proceeds are used exclusively to finance or refinance environment-friendly projects, such as clean water, renewable and sustainable energy clean transportation, climate change adaptation, sustainable waste management, sustainable land use, and biodiversity conservation.
An environmental expert, Dr. Ahovi Michael lamented that the flooding of the nation in 2019, which was attributed to climate change, was true in parts, but not fully true.
“The other wing is human shortcomings as Africans. It is because the nation has not to plan properly. We talk about climate change due to the heavy amount of rains that fall throughout 2019 and our dams were also filled and we had overflowed. That is the reason for the disaster that took place. But there is one human aspect that we failed, that is not planning to release water gradually. People in government have not been listening to forecast especially, by Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET). We learn to release the water in dams, in Cameroun and Nigeria. We shouldn’t wait for the dams to be endangered before releasing water in order not to release disaster”
According to him, the communities were faced with the twin devils of saturated natural rains and floods from water released by dams.
“It’s not because of rainfalls or climate change but government has not done adequate intelligent work. We should systemically shield water from the dams and not wait until its overflowed and flood adjoining states. Plastic pollution is still a recurring factor in the country. The plastic we are generating is still heavy and the danger is there even as people are dying silently because we are injecting plastic heavily. Those in riverine areas have been swallowing a lot of micro-plastic and so much of the plastics are on the waterways and fishes are consuming them. Yet nothing serious is done concerning it”.
He said the government should develop a plan of action toward eliminating plastics; by telling organizations that produce plastics to switch their business to others.
“Put machinery in place for enough recycling of plastics. There has to be a concrete plan of facing out the plastic. Air and noise pollution are still strong. Air pollution is strong in Lagos, Kaduna and other heavily populated states. Most of our vehicles produce heavy carbon dioxide and menthe into the atmosphere. More used vehicles are on our roads and 95percent of vehicles don’t have emission sensors that could help to regulate amounts of carbon dioxide coming out from the pipe”.
Dr. Michael said oil spillage is still a challenging problem and from experience, less of the factor blame should be passed on the companies in the oil communities.
“The communities are a challenge to the pipes and some of them that are employed to monitor the pipes don’t report when they are destroyed. When there is sabotage, most of the companies are not aware of time. Sometimes, the organizations turn a blind eye to the spillage because they get frustrated in paying people compensations. The government should have a plan, pick up one or two aspect of the environment, draw out a working plan and ensure that the plan is work upon for solution.”
He said, “Issue of air pollution could be picked, ensure that vehicles are taxed for polluting the environment, you would find out people would seat up and ensure that vehicles on roads are properly serviced to prevent fumes emissions. I expect the government to be practical on climate change. Educate Nigerians to stop what they are doing that encourages climate change. Messages in the form of, “Don’t cut your tress; they are like your lungs. If you drink in bottles, it tastes better.
If we don’t stop actions that work against nature, the world is heading to disaster. People who mess up this world are not likely to be around when the mess up would take place. In the next 50 to 70 years, we will begin to see serious disasters. In the 80/90’s when you read books on the environment, what you see was that animals are been extinct but today, its humanitarian crisis and human beings are challenged by climate change.”
“The amount of greenhouse gases release already into the atmosphere, the effect would come in 30 or 40 years. People could be taxed for polluting the environment. We have an emergency challenge now, people shouldn’t put the economy first before the health.”
Limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius required a drop in emissions of over 7per cent yearly, to 2030 but this still remains a long way to go amid huge emissions in the country.
Lagos-based environment activist and founder, LUFASI Park, Desmond Majekodunmi who expressed dismay that Nigeria didn’t do enough to guarantee a sustainable environment for the future in the outgone year called for immediate action to restore the environment.
Lagos-based environment activist and founder, LUFASI Park, Desmond Majekodunmi expressed dismay that Nigeria didn’t do enough to guarantee a sustainable environment for the future
“We need to place our assessment against that paradigm that the environment is humans’ life support and it is being seriously threatened. Has Nigeria done enough, no at all. Have we made progress, fantastic progress at least from pronouncement? Our president has made pronouncements about tree planting to plant 25 million trees, which is wonderful and has set up the inter-ministerial committee to that effect. Which is also encouraging, tresses are part of the major solution to solving the problem.”
He lamented that “All that is going on with the Niger/Delta Development Commission and the lack of progress for cleaning up Niger/Delta is extremely disappointing. There is a health emergency going on there and we have known about it for years. Government said they are going to do something but for the last two to three years now, it hasn’t been done. Every child that dies as a result of contamination and poison, that child’s death is on the head of those who haven’t do what suppose to be done.
“Niger/Delta has to be clean up immediately, gas flaring has to be stopped very soon. Whatever it takes, the cleanup must happen. We have the capacity to do that. State of emergency is needed on tree planting.
If China can dedicate over 400,000 soldiers just for tree planting, we can do something similar starting now because the house is on fire. We must recognise also that we can no longer be burning oil because burning it, is cruel for future generations.”
Majekodunmi said protecting the environment is a primary duty for everyone because it’s the human entire life support system stressing that the environment is being damaged to a ‘point of irreparable chaos’ if current negative habits toward the environment continue.
Similarly, the Director, Technical Programmes, Nigerian Conservation Foundation, (NCF), Dr Joseph Onoja, Reiterated that the talk about 25 million trees planting in Nigeria might be a mirage if measures are not put in place to nurture the tree into maturity when planted.
He said, “The government needs to put policies in place that would ensure that trees are planted and criminalise indiscriminate tree clearing. We might continue to have a high heat index in Nigeria if we don’t see that as an emergency.”
There are only a hand full of Cross River gorillas left in the world, thus conservation experts are calling on local and international stakeholders to save the mammals from extinction.
This is a summary of thoughts from a two-day workshop funded by the United Stares Fish and Wildlife Service and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) in Calabar recently. According to conservationists at the workshop, hunting and other such illegal activities have decimated the number of gorillas in the region. It is estimated that only 300 Cross River gorillas survive in the mountains between Nigeria and Cameroun.
In a press statement issued by the Country Director of WCS, Nigeria Programme, Mr. Andrew Dunn, the experts concluded that “the main threats to the survival of the species were identified as hunting and habitat destruction due to farming and logging.”
In recent years, logging of ebony has become a disturbing activity in the state, adversely affecting the all of the gorilla sites, including Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary, the Mbe Mountains and the Okwangwo Division of Cross River National Park.
The stakeholders frowned on the continued neglect of Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary, urging the Cross River State Government to ensure that “protection is improved and that it receives the necessary political support.”
“The most threatened of all African apes, the Cross River gorilla, is listed as ‘Critically Endangered’ based on its small population size, their fragmented distribution across a large complex landscape and ongoing threats to their survival from habitat loss and poaching,” Dunn noted in the statement.
“Roughly 100 Cross River gorillas are found in Nigeria (with an additional 200 in Cameroun). In Nigeria, Cross River gorillas are restricted to three sites in Cross River State: Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary, the Mbe Mountains and the Okwangwo Division of Cross River National Park. The largest and most important of the three sites is the Okwangwo Division of Cross River National Park, managed by the Nigeria National Park Service.”
Dr. Inaoyom Imong of the WCS had said, “there is a real crisis facing Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary. There are at least 1,000 illegal farms throughout the sanctuary which are expanding on a daily basis and unless action is taken soon, it is likely that the sanctuary and its gorillas will soon be lost forever. Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary has been neglected for many years and we are calling on the Cross River State Government to urgently prioritise the protection of the sanctuary before it is too late.
“It was also observed that the enclave communities in the Okwangwo Division of Cross River National Park continue to expand and participants at the workshop felt that their presence is detrimental for the long-term future of the national park. They called on the Federal Government to revisit plans for the voluntary resettlement of the enclaves as soon as possible. Cross River National Park is the richest biodiversity site in the country and recognised as a site of international importance. The gradual decline of such an important national park must be prevented.”Consequently, the participants came out with a “New Conservation Action Plan 2020-2025 to help save Cross River Gorillas: Africa’s Most Threatened Ape.”
Former Minster of Environment, Mrs. Hadiza Mailafia, has said the cleaning up of Ogoniland in Rivers State, Nanka in Anambra and other polluted places should not continue for eternity.
She made the remarks at the 13th meeting of the National Council of Environment (NCE) in Kaduna.
Due to negligence on the part of the authorities the Ogoniland cleanup has tarried longer than it should, almost eight years after the receipt of the technical report prepared by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) at the instance of the Federal Government.
In her remarks, the former minister urged the Federal Government and the Ministry of Environment, in particular, to tie its activities to a timeframe, saying, “Works should not continue for eternity. There must be a starting point and there must be a goal.
“Say by the year X or by the month Y, you would have achieved something. The environment ministries are very important, but the quality of personnel in them will determine the standing.”
She went on: “The world is interested in what we would call the 3Es – Education, Energy, and Environment.
“The issues of pollutions, erosions are across the country from Nanka in Anambra State right to Zamfara State. It is real, and so are the issues of climate change.”
In his opening address, the Minister of Environment, Dr. Mohammed Mahmood Abubakar, said the event, with the theme, “Promoting Environmental Advocacy for Sustainable Development: A panacea For Achieving The Next Level Agenda”, is in tandem with the President Muhammadu Buhari administration’s desire to turn the economy around for good.
He called on the private sector to seize the opportunity and invest in waste management, watershed management, renewable energy eco-tourism, green bond as well as encourage the implementation of the UNEP report for the remediation of Ogoniland and other efforts to remedy tainted places in other states.
The minister reiterated the commitment of the ministry in achieving the target of planting 25 million trees as pledged by the president at the just concluded United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) through massive afforestation and collaboration with state governments and other critical stakeholders.
He said: “In spite of numerous challenges, this government has demonstrated the political will and true commitment in reviving the ‘Nigeria Project’ by dealing with immediate and pressing issues of improving security, tackling corruption and revitalising the national economy.
“It is in the light of this that the government has to come up with a clear path, the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERPG) 2017-2020. Pursuant to the objective of the ERPG plan in the environment sector, our discussions and deliberations will revolve around the objectives which the present administration has set to achieve for the nation.”
Abubakar added: “ I wish to admonish our distinguished delegates to be guided by the spirit of nationalism and remain objective in considering the merits or otherwise of submitted council memoranda by applying the appropriate criteria as it relates to the ERPG set targets.”
