Environment Watch

JUDE OSSAI takes a peep into the environmental situation in parts of Enugu, the Enugu State capital and how the government is bracing up to change it.

THERE is no doubt that environment, which is the sum total of all surroundings of a living organism, including living and non-living things, is an issue that attracts attention of people notwithstanding race or creed.

In Enugu State, successive governments have claimed that the issue of environment is on their front burner, but in reality, it seems that the authorities have been paying lip service to the hydra-headed problem confronting the people.

It was learnt that the creation of the Ministry of Environment by the present administration led by Sullivan Chime is yielding positive result, even as critics of Chime’s government said it is not yet Uhuru, as heaps of refuse are still visible in some of the strategic streets in Enugu, and other urban areas of the state.

Some of these areas in Enugu metropolis cited are: Edinburgh Road, Abakpa Nike Road and Agbani Road. To worsen the situation, a respondent, who identified himself as Hilliary Nweke, noted that: “the residents of these areas are not helping matters either as they throw used ‘pure water’ sachet and other rubbish recklessly to block the waterways, consequently preventing the flow of water during rainfall.”

Apparently to stem environmental degradation, Chime’s regime embarked on aggressive development of infrastructure, especially on roads in urban centres.

Chime himself, while reviewing the 2011 budget during his presentation of this year’s budget to the state legislators in December last yearm, reiterated that, “Our objective is to consolidate on our achievements in the area of road construction and rehabilitation by striving to complete all on-going urban and rural road projects, while new ones will be awarded. This way, we shall enhance the rapid socio-economic transformation of the entire state. A lot more attention will be paid to the repairs and maintenance of our road networks with the setting up of a Road Maintenance Agency,” the governor further said in his budget presentation.

Governor Chime, however, agreed that their efforts in the environmental sector had not given them the desired results in recent times.

“The acquisition of three mechanised sweepers and 1,049 waste bins due to arrive the state and put to use in the first quarter of next year will greatly help to address the waste management challenges currently being faced,” the governor affirmed.

It was gathered that the Ministry of Works and Infrastructure received an allocation of N6.021billion in the 2012 budget, representing 23 per cent of the entire capital budget.  This allocation, according to him, will take care of the on-going urban road rehabilitation in Enugu and Nsukka as well as some inter-local government roads which the state government is constructing solely or in partnership with  some of the affected local government councils.

Indeed, today, Akwata is undergoing expansion and urbanisation. So are the dualised Zik Avenue with a new bridge and the Presidential Road extension that runs all the way to the Enugu-Port Harcourt expressway.

The same applies to Mgbemena - Amaigbo lane, NTA - Grail Message Road. Meanwhile,  work is progressing satisfactorily on other urban roads in Nsukka as well as in GRA, Achara Layout, Abakpa, New Haven, Independence Layout, Uwani, Coal Camp, Emene and Thinkers Corner, all in Enugu.

Perhaps, the major problem confronting the authorities as regards environment in the state is how to stop land speculators from encroaching on the waterways, as illegal structures still spring up despite warnings from the state and local government Town Planning Authorities that such structures would be demolished.

Ironically, many of the affected landlords of the demolished buildings branded the Chime’s regime as insensitive to the plight of the common man, as they alleged that the authority had thrown them back into the labour market following the removal of their stalls along the major streets of Enugu.

A visitor to Enugu now will observe a face-lift in the Coal City, as the on-going network of road is a delight to watch even as some lawless people have continued to litter the gutters with garbage, mostly at night for fear of being arrested by officials of the state environmental agency (ESWAMA) .

John Egbo, the state Commissioner for Environment had, at different fora, warned residents of Enugu on the danger of obstructing waterways, stressing that the law was no respecter of persons.

Little wonder  the Minister of  Environment, Hajia Hadiza Mailafiya, recently, said that human activities and failure to adhere to established regulations were responsible for the high level of environmental problems facing the country.

The minister, speaking in Abuja at the federal/states regulatory dialogue on the implementation of environmental regulations, organised by the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA), said for the country to achieve its developmental agenda, there must be “a deliberate effort towards the actualisation of environmental sustainability.”

According to the minister, who was represented at the meeting by the Director, Human Resources, Mallam Gambo Jakada,”the resulting challenges facing Nigeria are numerous, listing the major ones to include water pollution, indoor and outdoor pollution, industrial pollution, biodiversity loss, flooding, land degradation, desertification, climate change and ozone depletion.”

Expectedly, the people of Enugu State will be better for it if the state is able to achieve its goal in arresting environmental degradation.