Climate Watch: Lagos shuts companies polluting the environment

Despite directly impacting our communities, health and livelihood, climate-related reports usually take a back seat to dominant news beats like politics and business. Climate Watch aims to ensure you never miss important stories on climate change and actions being taken towards limiting its impact.

Here is a round-up of last week’s climate stories:

• Cholera outbreak in Nigeria can be attributed to environmental pollution, sanitation and hygiene. Any environment that does not maintain a high level of hygiene will be prone to disease outbreaks as such. This is why last week Mohammad Abubakar, minister of environment said the federal government will deploy sanitary inspectors to schools and restaurants in the country as part of efforts to tackle cholera outbreak. He said the environmental health surveillance of hotspot communities will also be conducted. Abubakar added that the ministry has activated sanitation desks in the 36 state environment ministries and FCT, noting that there will also be sensitisation exercises across the country to enlighten citizens on how to prevent cholera. Climate change is also an exacerbating factor as floods caused by the heavy rain causes a spread of the cholera bacteria. The ministry hopes to tackle all of these.  You can find out more here. 

• The Bauchi state government has cried out over the rate of destruction and loss to flooding the state has experienced since the rains started this year. Abubakar Gabarin, head of operations, Bauchi State Emergency Management Agency (BASEMA), said flood has killed three people, and destroyed properties worth N900 million in the state in 2021. Gabarin said the flood has affected many communities across 17 LGAs and destroyed 2,062 houses and 6,000 farmlands. This is because Bauchi has been experiencing heavy rainfall in recent times recording up to 20 hours of rain on August 10 alone. According to Gabarin, residents of affected communities are now taking refuge in neighbouring communities. More here.  

• The Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA) last week shut down the operations of two steel producing factories located at Ikorodu for environment-unfriendly activities while issuing warnings to others. The companies, Sun Flag Steel Limited and Top Steel Nigeria Limited, were ordered to stop work while African Steel Mills and others were warned to adhere to environmental laws or be shut down. Dolapo Fasawe, the general manager of LASEPA, who led the enforcement team, expressed displeasure at the rate of pollution and  the manner in which factory staff members work without safety equipment. She also stated that months of air quality monitoring showed there was high level compound in the air around Ikorodu and its environs and residents were at risk of diseases including cancer, pneumonia and respiratory infections.