Environment
Scholar, Others Raise Concern Over Unabated Environmental Pollution
A Professor of Immunology at the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, Arinola Ganiu, has been emphatic in his condemnation of unabated environmental pollution.
According to Ganiu, women with high exposure to oil pollution experience more adverse pregnancy outcomes.
“They are at higher risk of infant mortality and stillbirths,” the professor added in the survey, conducted on effects of oil spills and and other activities that constitute pollutants on the environment.
He said that oil spills increase the risk of low birth weight .
Ganiu also said that exposure to gas flaring, industrial pollution and exhaust fumes emitted into the atmosphere adversely affects health as they contain carbon monoxide which is a poisonous gas.
According to him, prolonged exposure to these pollution agents may result in coughing, breathlessness, asthma and other adverse health conditions.
In his response, a physician, DrAkinropo Olawumi, said that open defecation constitutes a major public health problem which should be urgently addressed.
Olawumi said that open defecation could easily lead to disease outbreaks like respiratory illnesses, cholera, typhoid, diarrhoea and tuberculosis.
According to him, water supply becomes contaminated with germs and bacteria due to open defecation.
Mr James Olaore, a Director in the Oyo State Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, said that open defecation was a major health and environmental challenge, but added that the government was not folding its arms.
According to Olaore, the present administration in the state is taking the challenge head on by organising sensitization rallies, constructing public toilets and strengthening its water and sanitation programme.
As for farmers in Kwara State, they say a major environmental challenge facing them particularly during the dry season, is indiscriminate bush burning.
According to them, this not only constitutes a health risk because of carbon monoxide dispersed into the atmosphere, but also economic loss due to farms that are destroyed.
Mr BabatundeAudu, one of the farmers said that part of his farm was burnt recently without him seeing the perpetrators who fled after causing the havoc.
“I got to the farm very early around 7 a.m, but to my surprise, part of my cassava farm has been burnt. I cried and felt bad because I don’t
know who was responsible for such act,” Audu said.
A rice farmer, Mr Ezekiel Obadare, said he was worried because most of the farms around him were burnt already.
“My mind is not settled at all since we are gradually entering the peak of the dry season. We always suffer from this bush burning crisis every dry
season.
“Almost all the rice farms surrounding mine are burnt. It is not good because people don’t just care about others, they only care about
themselves. We suffer a lot during dry season,” Obadare said.
Similarly, Mr BayoAina, a farmer said that bus burning had caused havoc in most farms in Kwara.
environment and open defecation.
“It is now an offence in the state for anyone to build a house without constructing at least a toilet under the Operation One-House, One-Toilet,” Fakunle- Okieimen said.
Also, MrBamideleFaparusi, the Commissioner for Public Utilities and Infrastructure, said that Ekiti State government had declared a state of emergency in the WASH sector and initiated a road map to make the state Open Defecation Free by 2022.
Faparusi said government, in its determination to ensure a safe environment had also signed a Memorandum of Understanding with UNICEF.
He said the memorandum with UNICEF was as a result of a damning report that Ekiti was the second in open defecation practice in the country.
Faparusi said government would embark on the construction of public toilets across the 16 local government areas of the state, in collaboration with UNICEF to drastically reduce open defecation.
The National Orientation Agency (NOA) on Thursday, launched an awareness campaign, aimed at educating residents on the increasing impact of climate change.
The campaign also seeks to enlighten residents on the urgent need for personal and community protection measures.
During the launch in Uyo on Thursday, the Akwa Ibom Director of NOA, Mr Mkpoutom Mkpoutom, said that the campaign aims at enlightening residents, about the changes in weather patterns.
He said that this includes unpredictable rise in temperatures, and how these changes threaten public health across the state.
Mkpoutom noted that the current weather was not harmattan, but an extreme form of air pollution, which is harmful to health as it could cause oxidative stress which affects body balance.
“Our environment is changing rapidly, and the effects are evident in the disruptions faced by our communities.
“It is paramount that every citizen of Akwa Ibom understands these changes and take necessary steps to protect themselves, their families, and their livelihoods,” he said.
He appealed to citizens to take the following precautions which include wearing of nose mask, drinking sufficient water, covering of food and water to keep away dust, washing fruits thoroughly before eating, among others.
He directed all NOA structures within the state to engage with local communities through town hall meetings and collaboration.
He also urged engagement with schools and community leaders, to disseminate vital information on early warning signs, as well as safety protocols during extreme weather conditions.
The Chairman of Epe Local Government Area of Lagos State, Ms Surah Animashaun, has urged traders of Aiyetoro and Oluwo fish markets to consistently ensure a hygienic trading environment.
She urged the traders to maintain cleanliness and observe proper environmental sanitation in the markets.
Animashaun said this during a visit to some of the market areas in Epe on Saturday.
She said that clean markets were critical to public health.According to her, poor sanitation could lead to the outbreak of communicable diseases, especially in fish markets, where waste management must be handled with extra care.
The council chairman urged traders to dispose of refuse appropriately, avoid indiscriminate dumping of waste, and ensure regular cleaning of stalls and surroundings
She noted that environmental hygiene is a collective responsibility, adding that everyone should be involved in this development.
Animashaun also warned that the local government would not hesitate to enforce existing environmental laws, including sanctions against defaulters.
She assured traders of the council’s commitment to providing adequate waste disposal facilities and regular monitoring to sustain a clean and healthy market environment.
The council boss also urged traders to desist from selling by the roadside, so as to avoid accidents, noting that several motor accidents had occurred along the Aiyetoro market area.
“We, therefore, urge traders to stop selling on the roadside,” she said.
President, Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Mrs Margaret Oguntala, has inaugurated the construction of 18 units residential terrace in highbrow Alausa area of Lagos toward bridging the nation’s shelter gap.
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