Expert Urges Public To Plant Trees

An environmentalist,
Mr Victor Funeke, has urged Nigerians to plant trees in their environment to minimise the effects of violent storms and other natural disasters.
Funeke gave this advice at the 2014 Earth Day celebration, organised by the United State Embassy, held at the Department of Theatre Art, University of Abuja, Giri, Gwagwalada.
He said that tree planting had lots of benefits to the human environment and called on the public to join hands with the government in making the country green.
Funeke said the Earth Day was an annual event, celebrated on April 22 worldwide but due to some constraints it was celebrated in the FCT on April 24.
According to him, the event, which was founded by Senator Gaylord Nelson was first celebrated in 1970 in the U.S.
Funeke said the aim of the event with the theme: “Green Cities’’, was to energise the public in securing a healthy environment through cleaning and planting of trees.
The environmentalist also encouraged Nigerians to cultivate the habit of keeping their environment clean for healthy future.
He, however, discouraged the habit of gathering garbage that could be harmful to human health.
“ People should try and keep their environment clean because their health depends on it. A dirty environment brings about sickness.
“Instead of littering the surrounding with plastic container like bottle water containers, they can gather them and recycle them into something else”, he said.
Funeke said the Earth Day was not only to be celebrated on April 22, but everyday, “because earth day is every day for everybody’’.

Roof of the Otto Police Barrack, Ebute Metta,destroyed by rainstorm in Lagos, recently. Photo: NAN