Residents of Kaduna in northwest Nigeria, especially those living close to the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company (KRPC), have expressed reservations over a potential health hazard posed by gas flaring from the nearby refinery.
The smoke emitted by the refinery’s chimneys, according to them hovers over their area and goes beyond 10 kilometers in radius, affecting many residents in the southern axis of the city.
A resident who lives close to the refinery, Nasiru Suleiman, said the gas which is being
flared on a daily basis has saturated the area and is causing serious health concern to the locals.
“It smells badly,” he remarks, adding:
“The emission of the carbon dioxide is a serious disaster on our part. In the morning, the gas always descends on the whole environment, making it difficult for us to breathe; it is also the same thing in the evening. And it has a very powerful and unbearable odour; if we are eating, it is as if we are swallowing the substance along with the food.”
Another resident, Jacob Zango, expressed fear that if immediate measures are not taken by concerned authorities, “the residents might not be able to bear it for long.”
“We are calling on government and management of the KRPC to take immediate action to stop this flaring, because what we are inhaling in this place is poisonous and is capable of killing us,” laments Zango.
Managing Director of KRPC, Bolanle Ayodele, who acknowledged the act, said they are concerned over its effect on both humans and the environment, and are working towards minimising the black smoke being emitted. He was however quick to say that it was not possible for the company to stop gas flaring completely.
“We are aware of this problem and, very soon, we will correct it because we are also concerned about the environment.”
Nigeria is the largest oil producing country in Africa and the sixth in the world. More than 40 years after oil refineries were established in Nigeria, gas flaring still persists despite known health and environmental hazards.
Gas flaring is not peculiar to Kaduna; it is more common in the Niger Delta region where cities like Warri and Port Harcourt also experience the same hazards. Experts estimate that Nigeria currently flares between 1.3 and 1.4 billion cubic feet of gas per day. This is only second to Russia which flares three times the size of what Nigeria burns.
The gas being flared is a constituent of crude oil which observers say can be efficiently utilised as a valuable source of energy, but it is being continuously burnt and worsening the case of global warming.
Although subsequent administrations in the country have set up laws and datelines to stop the flaring, the oil firms have opted to paying fines instead of adopting modern technologies to end it.
A report by Justice in Nigeria Now (JINN), a non-governmental organisation (NGO), says since 1969, the dateline to stop gas flaring has been shifted more than five times. An environmentalist, Aisha Okunade, discloses that the damage of gas flaring on the environment, land, water habitat and humans cannot be quantified. She stresses that although adequate research has not been concluded on the effects of gas flaring on humans, the effects are sometimes visible on people residing in areas close to refineries. The sign and symptoms, according to her, include vomiting, cancer diseases, lung diseases and Asthma.
The emitted gases, she adds, include nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, sulphur and nitrogen oxide, which mostly combined with rainfall to cause damage to soil. She calls on the Nigerian government to allocate enough funds to research institutions for a comprehensive research on such gases. The concern on the flaring and environmental degradation has led to many mass movements and activism, especially in the Niger Delta region.
In 1995, a renowned novel writer and activist, Ken Saro-Wiwa, was executed by the Nigerian government for oil-related activism on the environment.
Despite the hue and cry, Nigerian government has not taken notable steps at impressing on the oil companies to stop the practice. Early last year, a United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) Report indicted the giant Shell Oil Company operating in the Niger Delta region for contaminating the soil and environment of Ogoniland in the past 50 years.
The Federal Government said it would clean up the area, but that is yet to commence.
The nation’s power crisis has indeed gotten to a crisis situation. Recently, Power Minister, Chinedu Nebo, confirmed the nightmare.
Nebo
He lamented that 120 million Nigerians – representing about 75 per cent of the population – do not have access to electricity. The minister attributed the present challenges to vandalism, unprecedented systems collapse and heavy storms that shattered transmission lines in some states that destroyed four transmission towers.
While a considerable number of Nigerians are in response to the nemesis climbing down the energy ladder – moving from electricity, gas and kerosene to fuel wood and other traditional biomass energy forms, a lot more have turned to the use of generators as an adaptive measure.
Indeed, as at 2006, says a report, over 60 million generators were being imported annually into the country, while about N1.6 trillion was spent to fuel the generators. The implication is that the nation has become a dumping ground for all sorts of generating sets from all over the world; the business of generator sales, servicing and fuelling is booming, and the device has become a part of us.
No wonder both the supposed solutions to the impasse addressed in this piece have to do with the almighty, life-saving machine. Ironically, they were fabricated by teenagers – and aimed at eliminating the use of fuel (petrol, diesel) and probably make the generator more environment-friendly and less expensive to operate.
But, while one invention has been formally celebrated globally, the other appears virtually unknown.
Recently, two teenage girls invented the urine-powered generator, which seeks to provide affordable and sustainable energy sources as a solution to the epileptic power supply in developing countries without the attendant consequences caused by carbon poisoning.
The urine-powered generator
The inventors, Duro-Aina Adebola and Zainab Bello from Doregos Private Academy in Lagos, won the United Technology Company (UTC) Award for Excellence in Science and Engineering and prize money of $3,000 in scholarship.
The device works on the principle of electrolysis and energy conversion. The direct current (DC) output of the generator is connected to the urine electrolytic cell, to ensure continuous production of the hydrogen-oxygen which ensures the continuous running of the engine. The exhaust gas from the generator is water vapour and non-toxic, compared to carbon monoxide from the conventional carbon-based fuels.
The other is a fabrication by a roadside technician who fixes cars and motorcycles’ electric fittings in Makurdi, Benue State. Nineteen-year-old Christopher Chinedu Okorie, a staff of Innoma Auto Electrical in the Benue State capital, is the inventor of a generator that operates only on battery.
The battery-powered generator
Incidentally, Okorie is not educated and holds only a primary school leaving certificate. But that apparently did not deter his initiative to devise a concept to aid in power generation purely with the desire to cut down the cost of running a generator on fuel.
Asked how he got the idea, Chinedu said he was just thinking of how to use other means rather than fuel to generate power when the idea came to him. According to him, his constant work with batteries as he charges them for both cars and motorcycles drew his thought to their ability to run a generator motor and armature to produce electricity.
He stated that he made the prototype of the electric generator using the engine of a portable fuel generator commonly known as “I pass my neighbour” with a motor. According to him, he used a more powerful motor to pair with the generator engine which gave him an 8-point power output which, according to him, is enough to run two television sets, a clipper, a radio, and light point.
“If you want it to carry more, you will increase the capacity of the motor and battery then. If it is a big generator, it will be 20 points and can power television, pressing iron, fridge and water pump,” he explained.
Commenting on the cost of producing an electric generator, the electrician said he can make an 8-point generating set for N45,000. Queried on the high cost in comparison to a similar type that runs on fuel which sells around N15, 000 in the open market, Okorie said he is incapable of producing the sets now at a cheap rate unless he gets help from the government or other corporate bodies or manufacturers which will subsidise the cost.
He explained that his invention, which is yet to pass the test of professional electrical engineers, would help the society by reducing the noise of generators, curb the use of fuel and thus environmental pollution.
The girls hope to partner with larger companies to produce the alternative generator on a mass scale, although some describe it has being too bulky, expensive and unrealistic to solve Nigeria’s electricity challenges.
In the spirit of this year’s World Environment Day (WED) celebrations, the Lagos State Government has apparently taken up a campaign to address the worrisome issue of food waste in the light of its socio-economic and environmental implications.
Fashola
At a ceremony to commemorate the WED 2013, Governor Babatunde Fashola laments that food waste leads to squandering of resources such as fertilizers, pesticides and fuel used for transportation. He frowns at the vast amount of food going to landfills, a situation he says creates more methane that significantly contributes to global warming.
The theme for this year’s WED celebrations is “Think.Eat.Save: Reduce Your Footprint” which, according to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), is an anti-food waste and food loss campaign that encourages the reduction of the individual’s foodprint.
According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), every year 1.3 billion tonnes of food is wasted, an ammount equivalent to the same amount produced in the whole of sub-Saharan Africa. At the same time, one in every seven people in the world go to bed hungry and more than 20,000 children under the age of five die daily from hunger.
Given this enormous imbalance in lifestyles and the resultant devastating effects on the environment, the theme encourages the individual to become more aware of the environmental impact of the food choices you make and empowers you to make informed decisions.
While the planet is struggling to provide us with enough resources to sustain its seven billion people (growing to nine billion by 2050), the FAO estimates that a third of global food production is either wasted or lost. The UN body describes food waste is an enormous drain on natural resources and a contributor to negative environmental impacts.
This year’s campaign rallies individuals to take action from their home and then witness the power of collective decisions they and others have made to reduce food waste, save money, minimise the environmental impact of food production and force food production processes to become more efficient.
Governor Fashola, represented by his Deputy, Princess Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, explains that climate change affects agriculture particularly food production, which he describes as a major concern to Nigeria where agriculture plays a significant part in the economy.
Orelope-Adefulire
“We have already begun to see some of the impact. Only last year, the severe flooding across Nigeria showed us the damage that can be wrought from climate change,” stresses Fashola, adding that avoidance of food waste means efficient land use, improved water resource management and positive impact on climate change.
He lists some food waste reduction tips to include: carrying out waste audits and product loss analysis for high waste areas; working with suppliers to reduce waste; offering discounts for near-expiration items; redesigning product packages to avoid waste; limiting menu choices and introduce flexible portioning; creating staff engagement programmes; increasing food donations; following storage guidance to keep food at its best; and requesting smaller portions of food.
Environment Commissioner, Tunji Bello, laments that many Nigerians take the environment for granted because “it has never crossed our minds that most of the resources from nature, most especially food, need to be economically deployed.”
Bello
According to him, the culture of wasting food cannot be a guarantee for providing adequate food for the people. “It would be an aberration to believe that there is enough food in the world even when millions of people are starving. The situation of plenty food can become a truism if we all stop food waste so that we can conveniently change the course of human history.”
He urges Lagosians to abide by the “Waste not, want not” motto. “We simply can’t afford to waste up to half of the food produced in our territory. The administration of Governor Babatunde Fashola (SAN) unflinchingly believes that the Think.Eat.Save campaign would definitely help reduce waste in our environment and we are committed to its pursuit.”
A drama presentation titled “Mammy Water’s Wedding (MWW)”, a presentation on ecological balance, by the Bode Showande Theatre Academy, was featured during the event.
The play, which depicts Water as bride and Earth the bridegroom, lays emphasis on the fact that it is easier to see our own image through the eyes of a stranger.
In the play, the bride sees the world of Akinla (Earth) more clearly that he sees it. It turns out a sacrifice for her to leave her world for his, but she does it for love. Ecologically, Water loves Earth, and endows it with the gift of life.
MWW depicts that the barrier to love between Water and Earth is filth, or ecological imbalance in our lives.
“The morale of the tale is that, should we desire to enjoy the love of Mother Nature, holistically we must have ecological balance in all directions and all levels of our lives,” submits Bode Showande, who heads the Academy.
Sowande, playwright and theatre director at the Olabisi Onabanjo University in Ago-Iwoye, Ogun State, adds: “The play is a total theatre of dialogue, music and dance, bringing the audience to the message, and vice versa.”
Environment Minister, Hadiza Mailafia, echoed similar sentiments in Abuja, emphasising that, apart from wastages incurred in the process of production, disasters put agriculture and food security at risk, and tend to have the most severe consequences on vulnerable and poor agriculturally-dependent people in the society.
Mailafia
Her words: “Every year, countries of the West Africa and Sahel sub-region are adversely affected by natural disasters, such as droughts and floods, as well as transboundary animal diseases, economic crises and civil conflicts. These events result in losses of life, assets and livelihoods, consequently weakening the food and nutrition security of the populations.
“The 2012 floods in Nigeria wreaked havoc on several states of the federation, adversely affecting human lives, property, livelihoods, settlements, fresh water/coastal water resources, fisheries, forest, biodiversity, agricultural farmlands, food supplies, health/sanitation and human migrations; placing a huge challenge to food supply and food security across the nation.”
She discloses that one way to narrow the hunger gap and improve the well-being of the most vulnerable is to address the massive loss and waste inherent in the food system where “at least one-third of all food produced fails to make it from the farm to the table.”
The United Nations Resident Coordinator in Nigeria and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative, Daouda Toure, notes climate change in form of increases in the incidence of extreme weather events, floods, production shocks, population growth, increasing global affluence, stronger linkages between agriculture and energy markets, and natural resource constraints will all impact on food prices.
Toure
He says: “This is why, as a part of our ongoing partnership with the Federal Ministry of Environment, the UNDP has supported the development of major policies such as National Environment Policy, National Policy on Drought and Desertification, National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan, National Erosion and Flood Control Policy, Climate Change Adaptation and, most recently, the National Climate Change Policy as part of the critical measures for reducing the underlying risks of climate change. UNDP also supported the national multi-stakeholder preparatory process, which resulted in the robust National Rio+ 20 reports that was presented by President Goodluck Jonathan last year in Brazil.”
Toure, who was represented by UNDP Country Director, Ade Lekoetje Mamonyane, congratulated Mailafia for “this success, and salute your foresight and inspirational leadership which is once again ensuring the sustenance on Nigeria’s regional leadership role on the issue of environmental governance and climate change negotiations.”
Mamonyane
“We assure you and the ministry on behalf of UNDP and indeed the entire UN Systems in Nigeria of our continuing commitment to you and the private sector and members of civil society in promoting sustainable development in Nigeria, especially within the context of the outcomes of the Rio+20 summit and in developing the country’s capacity on the green economy to the future that Nigerians want.”
UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon, explains in a message that, in developing countries, pests, inadequate storage facilities and inefficient supply chains are major contributors to food loss. According to him, those who grow for export are also often at the mercy of over-stringent expectations of buyers who place a premium on cosmetic perfection.
Ki-Moon
He believes that infrastructure and technology can reduce the amount of food that perishes after it is harvested and before it reaches the market, saying: “Developing country governments can work to improve essential infrastructure and maximise trade opportunities with neighbours; developed nations can support fair trade and rationalise sell-by dates and other labelling systems; businesses can revise their criteria for rejecting produce; and consumers can minimise waste by buying only what they need and re-using left-over food.”
“On this World Environment Day, I urge all actors in the global food chain to take responsibility for environmentally sustainable and socially equitable food systems. The current global population of seven billion is expected to grow to nine billion by 2050. But the number of hungry people need not increase. By reducing food waste, we can save money and resources, minimize environmental impacts and, most importantly, move towards a world where everyone has enough to eat,” he declares.
A year ago, Professor of Botany and the former Executive Director of the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF), Professor Emmanuel Obot, passed on. In memory of the late botanist, the NCF recently organised a Memorial Lecture and launching of his Orchids Centre which consist of his personal collections of plants (orchids, epiphyte and ferns).
The late Prof. Obot
Acting Executive Director of the NCF, Alade Adeleke, said that the Foundation will do all it can to keep the memory of Professor Obot alive. “We will ever cherish his legacy, hard work and commitment to nature conservation. He remains ever in our mind. One of the ways of keeping his memory alive is setting up this Orchids Centre, which is a collection of Professor Obot’s works.”
Located within the Lekki Conservation Centre (LCC) facility, the Orchids Collection Centre will provide an opportunity for school children, guests and visitors to learn from the arrays of plant species and populate the mini arboretum with other identifiable species that can be sourced locally. Pocadots Ltd, the plant flower exhibitor within the LCC facility, has volunteered to assist in the future beautification and propagation of the species in the centre.
Obot’s widow, Mrs Emma Obot, described her husband as a man who worked tirelessly and fearlessly to make life meaningful to all.
L-R: Late Professor Emmanuel Obot’s sons, Daniel and Asuquo; Obot’s sister, Edu; his wife, Emma; and Chairman, NCF’s Fundraising and Awareness Committee, Desmond Majekodunmi, at the lunching of the Orchids Collection Centre in honour of Obot, in Lagos
“His simplicity and hard work always amazed me. He talked less but communicated well to me and the children. He was simply passionate about what he did and it pushed me and the children to aspire to greater things,” she said.
She expressed gratitude to NCF, saying: “This is what my husband has always loved to do. He was so passionate about these orchids. I know if he was alive he would have loved to see this.”
A renowned orchid specialist with expertise in Geographical Information System (GIS) applications, Obot was former Chairman, BirdLife’s Council for the Africa Partnership (CAP); Co-Chair, IUCN Commission on Environmental Economic and Social Policy (CEESP); Member, IUCN Working Group on Extractive Industry and Biodiversity (WGEIB); and Member, IUCN Orchid Survival Group.
Obot’s impeccable biological research ability and effort earned him honours citation in the rare butterfly subspecies – Acraea oreas oboti – named after him.
According to NCF officials, he worked for over 30 years in design and implementation of demonstration projects to elucidate strategies for environmentally-sustainable community based development processes that guaranteed access rights and secure land tenure to local people as well as development and application of participatory renewable natural resources management tools with local people living around protected areas in Nigeria.
“He led the NCF team to facilitate the development of Natural Resource Management Plans and Sustainable Community Development strategies for targeted communities in the Niger Delta region towards the promotion of a paradigm shift among Niger Delta Communities and Governments from oil and gas to sustainable management of renewable natural resources towards poverty reduction through the realisation of the trade value of biodiversity,” said Alade.
Residents of Sankwab, a peninsula community in Zango Kataf Local Government Area of Kaduna State in Northern Nigeria who are predominantly peasants, are having sleepless night over their fast changing environment.
A United Nations report has indicated that thousands of people are dying from smoke inhalation caused by cooking with firewood
Community Leader, Mallam Yashim Sadongi, explained that the area, which is surrounded by a river running from South to East and a stream from North to East, is largely agrarian. He stated that the area was covered with plentiful natural forest tress because tradition forbids cutting down the trees in some sections of the community, and that even hunting was regulated.
But, within the past 10 years, the village has been exposed to rampant environmental hazards due to overwhelming logging and firewood procurement practices. He explained that this happened because the people violated the traditions in the search for a means of livelihood such as firewood for cooking and other uses.
Sodangi, who is about 94 years old, expressed concern that most of the exposed lands are no more arable except when large quantities of fertilizers are applied to the farms. He also lamented the outbreak of several diseases which, he added, were very rare a few years ago.
“There is too much heat everywhere with little tress to go for cover, and many of our children die just because of feverish conditions. Before now no child would die just because of these feverish conditions because when there is anything like fever we know the appropriate herbs to use to cure it and it was not rampant as we are witnessing now. We know the herbs to use for Shawara (yellow fever), we know the plant to use for Zazzabi (malaria and typhoid), and we also have the traditional herbs for Zawo da Amai (diarrhea); that is during those days”.
Desertification is among many issues causing great concern in the Nigerian society. Some communities within regions of northern Nigeria specifically in Yobe, Kano, Borno, Katsina and Kebbi states are presently being ravaged by desertification. These areas are characterised by absence of grass and trees, as well as hazy and hot weather.
Inadequate research by experts has made it impossible to know the nature movement of desert into the northern areas but some have estimated the encroachment to about 2 kilometers each year. This situation is gradually being aggravated by rampant cutting down of trees for firewood and commercial purposes because the locales have no available alternatives for cooking. A United Nations report last year indicated that thousands of people are dying from smoke inhalation caused by cooking with firewood.
Solomon Guruza, a Director at the Kaduna State Ministry of Environment, described the incessant cutting down of trees as alarming, stating that something must be done urgently to address the problem.
“The situation has adverse effect on economic and agricultural activities because the lands are no more arable and the environment becomes more unbearable characterised by hazy weather and quick evaporation.”
He added that seven nursery beds were established earlier this year across Local Government Areas of the state, stating that government would distribute millions of the seedlings to schools, groups and individuals to plant in their areas as part of measures to control desert encroachment.
The forest reserves in almost all the northern states of Nigeria have disappeared due to poor or no funding. Government’s political will is lacking on environmental issues despite the severe disasters witnessed in the country due to climatic changes particularly flooding which last year destroyed lives and properties worth billions of Naira.
Experts have described these challenges as a wake-up call, adding that man must recreate what he has used his mental capability and technological know-how to destroy.
Though Nigeria appears to be on track to be among the world’s top 20 largest economies, climate change could however impact the country’s development and derail the dream. The authorities are faced with the task of lessening the impacts of the phenomenon and grow the country’s economy with a reduced carbon footprint.
Last year, during the rainy season, flooding killed nearly 400 people, displaced an estimated 3.8 million more, damaged oil production facilities and destroyed homes and businesses.
Today, the government, along with its international partners, is taking steps to rebuild, and making climate resiliency and low-carbon growth part of its development plans.
In agriculture, which accounts for 40 percent of the country’s GDP and employs 70 percent of Nigeria’s people, higher temperatures and more erratic rainfall could contribute to a long-term 20-30-percent reduction in crop yields, according to the reports. Climate change impacts the production of livestock by reducing feed and increasing thermal stress to animals. Declining domestic yields could lead to a 40 percent increase in rice imports in a country where much of the fast-growing population depends on rice as a staple of its diet.
“Various climate models indicate that average temperatures across Nigeria are expected to rise an average of 1–2°C by 2050 and even more during the winter,” says Raffaello Cervigni, Lead Environmental Economist at the World Bank and author of the two reports. “In this way, climate change is likely to make food, energy, and water security harder for Nigeria to achieve.”
According to Cervigni, these likely impacts will be felt the most by the country’s poorer segments of the population which have less means to adapt and diversify the sources of their livelihoods.
A Way Forward
The reports, launching on June 10 in Abuja, propose specific policies, technologies, and other solutions to help Nigeria develop its economy while remaining climate resilient.
Toward Climate-Resilient Development in Nigeriatakes a comprehensive look at the potential impacts of climate change on agriculture, livestock, and water resource management.
According to the report, to help protect vulnerable rain-fed crops against the harsher climate of the future, farmers can incorporate sustainable land management practices such as agroforestry – where trees are integrated with crops, animals, or both to provide shade and natural fertilisation – and conservation agriculture methods such as low or no tillage, which reduces soil depletion.
These farming practices, the report says, can not only increase yields, but also reduce their fluctuations in the uncertain climate of the future, thereby increasing food and income security for farmers and enhance the ability of people in rural communities to protect themselves against climate change-related impacts.
Low-Carbon Development in Nigeria outlines a low-carbon strategy that would position Nigeria as a regional and international leader on climate action. Adopting a low-carbon strategy in the power sector, for example, including energy efficiency, solar and wind energy; and combined cycle technology in gas-fired generation, could provide the electricity Nigeria needs to grow, but with cost savings in the order of 7 percent, and avoiding the emission of close to two billion tons of CO2..
In the oil and gas industry, a low-carbon strategy that focuses on reducing natural gas flaring and capturing the gas for commercial use (in the power and other sectors) could generate as much as $7.5 billion in net additional gains.
Overall, this low-carbon scenario could generate net benefits in the order of two percent of GDP over 25 years, according to the report.
While both reports note that low-carbon, climate resilient development is possible and often economically attractive; the approach is by no means easy in Nigeria or elsewhere. A variety of barriers, including lack of information and technology, limited capacity in institutions and lack of financing, stand in the way; thus the need to act now to overcome these barriers and reap the benefits of a development path that will allow Nigeria’s economy to grow – even as the climate changes – and its people to thrive.
Adeniyi Osuntogun, environmentalist, former Director of the Leadership for Environment & Development (LEAD) in Nigeria and Professor of Agricultural Economics, recently clocked 70 years of age. EnviroNews Nigeria joins in celebrating the icon.
Early Life
I started off as a young boy born by a teacher. My father was a teacher while my mother was a very caring woman and a trader. On retirement, he became a businessman. He was relatively successful by the standard of his time.
My father was a strict person and a disciplinarian. When you’re a son of a teacher, nothing less is expected from you in terms of mannerism. My father believed that all his children must be focused. His focus was not to acquire any wealth, but to give his children good education. In life, the greatest gift you can give a child is education. While his colleagues were busy acquiring wealth and buying properties, my father was busy investing in our education. Today, they now know the difference.
I began my childhood education at the Catholic Preparatory Nursery and Primary School in Ibadan, Oyo State, and attended secondary education at Olu-Iwa (now Adeola Odutola) College, Ijebu Ode in 1957. I left there in 1961 and moved to Muslim College, Ijebu Ode for my Higher School Leaving Certificate. I entered University of Ibadan, where I graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics, from 1964 to1967. After a short span of working in the banking sector, notably the United Bank for Africa (UBA) and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), I went to the University of Leeds, United Kingdom, to obtain my Ph.D. degree in Agricultural Economics. I was also part of the Overseas Development Institute in Nigeria, India and Britain.
When I came back, I was battling within myself whether to go into banking or academic profession. I told my wife even academics was paying less than what the banking sector offers that it pays us to go into academics as it would enable us contribute to national development. I later joined University of Ife now Obafemi Awolowo University as lecturer Grade II in 1972. I rose through the ranks to become a Professor of Agricultural Economics in 1980. By the grace of God, I became the Vice-Chancellor of the University in January 1990, the position I held till September 1991.
Osuntogun with wife, Prof. Bolanle Osuntogun
Frankly, I was lucky to have a good wife, Bolanle, who is very understanding, and cooperative. Anything you do in life, there is need for dedication, pain-staking devotion and vision. One must be focused, work and pray. You face challenges, but never give up. In those days and up till now, academia is relatively disadvantaged in the Nigerian economy in terms of welfarism, things of life; but in terms of knowledge, we have knowledge. But one must not be discouraged by that, always think of what to do with talents God has given you.
Journey into Environmental Education
In 1990, the then Director of Federal Environment Protection Agency (FEPA), Dr. Evans Aina, was looking for an economist, particularly an economist that understands biodiversity and natural resources. He called on me to assist him. So, when Nigeria was preparing for first Rio Summit in June 1992, he appointed me as one of the members of the preparatory team, which will prepare Nigeria’s position for the summit in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. We got it prepared, that’s how my journey into the environmental arena began. After that, I did a couple projects and reports for the agency and one of them is on Economics of Biodiversity. The report was highly valued by United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP). From there on, I became an expert and Biodiversity Economist.
When I left office as a Vice Chancellor, I joined Leadership for Environment and Development (LEAD), the world’s largest international non-profit organisation focused on capacity building on leadership and sustainable development, as National Programme Director. I was introduced to LEAD by Chief (Mrs.) Opral Benson through Foundation for Environment Development and Education in Nigeria (FEDEN). Nigeria was one of the foundation members. My memorable time in LEAD Nigeria was when we produced our first set of fellows. Then, Nigeria didn’t enjoy any goodwill internationally, and I brought 15 fellows for the international session, where you have Brazil, India, China, and Indonesia. Nigeria’s programme was rated the best of them all. It made me proud. In those days, LEAD could hardly organise any programme or co-organise event, without taking Nigeria into consideration. During my tenure, we had an average of 15 fellows per Cohort and I graduated 14 Cohorts.
Impact of LEAD Programme
LEAD is a global institution and the mission is to inspire leadership and change for a sustainable world. We believe that people are the key to change and that the complexities of sustainable development can only be tackled by investing in leadership.
The challenges of sustainable development are huge – poverty is deepening, populations are growing, natural resources are diminishing and the international community has failed to tackle climate change effectively.
The only way to begin to address these challenges is through the adaptation of sustainable models of development at the local, regional and global levels. Sustainable development cannot be achieved without leadership. Leaders equipped with skills for sustainable decision making ensure that we are able to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
In LEAD Nigeria, we are developing a new generation of outstanding leaders from all sectors, with leadership skills and understanding of sustainable development. Those who came as scientists, when they graduate, can discuss intelligently on social science, physical science, natural science and all areas of human endavours.
How to Improve Environment Education
It is time for tertiary institutions to imbibe all aspects of the LEAD programme that preaches theory and practical works. We ensure graduating fellows look into challenges people face at the grassroots’ levels and proffer solutions. This is what is lacking in teaching of education in our tertiary institutions.
When we started in 1992, we were preaching environment; people thought we are just trying to get ourselves occupied. They did not appreciate some of the messages we were putting across, and the implication of environment. That was the same with the Ministry of Environment, which is suffering lack of cooperation and appreciation. Government must now know environment cuts across all sectors and it’s a critical thing.
Everyone must tap into the sustainable principles that allow us to use resources, not for us today, must use it in such a way that generation yet unborn will also have access to those resources.
One problem that usually comes up is lack of environmental policy. It is now being put in place. It is very critical, for government to move forward. There must be a policy, and programmes to achieve what has been stated in the policy. The greatest handicap the ministry is facing is funding. The activities of the ministry cut across, and when they are talking about priority, environment is something not easily visualised, unlike roads and industry. Until recently that everybody is facing the problem of floods, desertification, and all forms of environmental health impact, that the government is paying attention to know that the environment is not a theory, it’s a reality.
Several weeks ago, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in the US reported that atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO2) surpassed a notable milestone. Indeed, they reached a daily average above 400 parts per million (ppm), albeit for the first time in human history.
Christiana Figueres, UNFCCC Executive Secretary
Observers say the milestone, hit on May 9, may be symbolic, but that manmade CO2 emissions from the burning of fossil fuels continue to rise, bringing greater atmospheric warming and exacerbating the effects of climate change.
“The last time we’re confident that CO2 was sustained at these levels is more than 10 million years ago, during the middle of the Miocene period,” says climate scientist Michael Mann. “This was a time when global temperatures were substantially warmer than today, and there was very little ice around anywhere on the planet.”
CO2 measurements surpassed 400 ppm in the Arctic last summer, but the readings from Hawaii mark the first time prolonged levels above 400 ppm have been observed at more moderate latitudes.
Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Christiana Figueres, has called for a greatly stepped-up response to climate change by all parts of society.
“With 400 ppm CO2 in the atmosphere, we have crossed an historic threshold and entered a new danger zone. The world must wake up and take note of what this means for human security, human welfare and economic development. In the face of clear and present danger, we need a policy response which truly rises to the challenge. We still have a chance to stave off the worst effects of climate change, but this will require a greatly stepped-up response across all three central pillars of action: action by the international community, by government at all levels, and by business and finance.”
Governments will be meeting in June in Bonn, Germany, for the next round of climate change talks under the umbrella of the UNFCCC. A central focus of the talks will be negotiations to build a new global climate agreement and to drive greater immediate climate action.
Former US Vice-President, Al Gore, remarks: “Take this day and the milestone it represents to reflect on the fragility of our civilisation and the planetary ecosystem on which it depends We must take immediate action to solve this crisis. Not tomorrow, not next week, not next year. Now.”
Founder of 350.org, Bill McKibben, states: “The only question now is whether the relentless rise in carbon can be matched by a relentless rise in the activism necessary to stop it.”
Nigerian climatologist, Prof. Olukayode Oladipo, stresses: “This points to the fact that global efforts to reduce CO2 emissions are not working and there is need to have higher emission reduction commitments from the main pollutants – America, Russia, China and India.”
CEO of Ecometrica, Richard Tipper, underlines the need to maintain natural carbon sinks, saying: “One thing seems clear. Despite the annual round of climate negotiations the rate of carbon accumulation in the atmosphere is increasing, and seem likely to continue to increase at a rate beyond many of the scenarios envisaged back in 1995.
“Forests remain an important sink of CO2, taking up around one quarter of what is emitted by our use of fossil fuels each year (now up to 31 billion tonnes per year) – much like a benevolent uncle paying part of one’s debts. But despite progress in some countries on tackling deforestation, there are warning signs that forest health is declining. The benevolent uncle may be unable to help much longer and some forests could tip from becoming sinks to sources.”
CO2 is the primary greenhouse gas emitted through human activities. It is naturally present in the atmosphere as part of the Earth’s carbon cycle (the natural circulation of carbon among the atmosphere, oceans, soil, plants, and animals). Human activities are altering the carbon cycle – both by adding more CO2 to the atmosphere and by influencing the ability of natural sinks, like forests, to remove CO2 from the atmosphere. While CO2 emissions come from a variety of natural sources, human-related emissions are responsible for the increase that has occurred in the atmosphere since the industrial revolution.
Since the Industrial Revolution began around 1750, human activities have contributed substantially to climate change by adding CO2 and other heat-trapping gases to the atmosphere.
The civil society in Nigeria has said that, in line with the Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that keeps temperature increase below 1.5°C, there is an urgent need for emission cuts by setting specific target for all Annex I parties to reduce emissions by at least 40 percent below 1990 level by 2015 and 100 percent by 2050 below 1990 level.
Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria
Operating under the aegis of the Nigerian Climate and Sustainable Development Network (NCSDN), the activists, who rose from a two-day forum that held recently in Ibadan, Oyo State, declared that any agreement by Nigeria or other African government to accept keeping the temperature above 1.5°C amounts to “disastrous consequences for us thereby condemning Africa to incineration and conflicts.”
In a document released at the close of the deliberations titled “Ibadan Declaration,” NCSDN joined its continental body, the PanAfrican Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA) to condemn the withdrawal of Canada, New Zealand, Russia and Japan from the Second Period of the Kyoto Protocol (KP2) and the continued refusal of the United States to ratify the protocol. The deliberations reviewed and analysed the outcomes of COP18/CMP8 and their implications for Nigeria.
“We call on these countries to accept their historical responsibilities, reconsider their position and recommit without further delay and conditions,” the group noted, stressing that it disagrees with locking in low ambition in the KP2 implementation period for eight years covering less than 15 percent of the global emission.
“The NCSDN calls on all Parties to use the 2014 Review as an opportunity to scale up targets for the remainder of this period. Further, we call upon Parties to respect the timeline for the adoption of the global climate change deal in 2015 and come up with an ambitious, fair, equitable and legally binding agreement.”
Developed countries, the group continued, should honour and deliver on their pledge of providing $100 billion by 2020, while also scaling up their pledges to fulfill their obligation to provide adequate, new and additional funds “as this amount is far from all estimates of climate finance needed by developing countries.”
The body urged the COP (Conference of Parties) to establish a clear and transparent mechanism for monitoring, verification and evaluation of delivery of climate funds; even as it demanded enhancing participation of civil society organisations (CSOs), faith-based organisations and other relevant stakeholders in climate finance boards.
The Ibadan Declaration reads in part: “We call for immediate establishment of an independent process to conduct transparent and consultative verification on developed countries’ claim that they have successfully delivered all fast-start finance (FSF) of over $30 billion to developing countries during 2010-2012 in accordance with the controversial Copenhagen Accord, which metamorphosed into Cancun Agreement.
“Developed countries must compensate Africa and Nigeria in particular for the full costs of avoiding harms, actual harms and damage, and lost opportunities for our development resulting from climate change. We oppose any efforts to establish adaptation as an obligation not a right, or to use adaptation as a means to divide or differentiate between developing countries. Therefore, we demand for the establishment of an international mechanism for compensation on the loss and damage caused by extreme weather events related to climate change.
“Developed countries must remove intellectual property rights, pay full incremental costs of technology transfer to protect developing countries and contribute for peaking and declining of global emission. We oppose efforts to sell rather than transfer appropriate technologies, or to strengthen rather than relax intellectual property rights. Developed and developing countries should support the adoption and development of indigenous and locally innovated technology as well as ensuring efficiency in technology transfer and deployment.
“Agriculture is one of the crucial sectors affected by climate change and which supports food and livelihoods security of millions around the world especially in developing countries, therefore, member states and Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) need to conclude the agriculture negotiations under UNFCCC with focus on adaptation and expand the remit to cover sustainable livestock production systems as part of solution to climate change as recommended in pares 111 and 112 of Rio+20 final outcome document.
“Adaptation efforts should systematically and effectively address gender-specific impacts of climate change in the areas of energy, water, food security, agriculture and fisheries, biodiversity and ecosystem services, health, industry, human settlements, disaster management, and conflict and security.
“Strategies to improve and guarantee mainstreaming of gender and reproductive health issues into the climate change discourse and adaptation/mitigation strategies should be developed.
“There is an urgent need for gender equity and enhanced participation of women, youth, indigenous people and marginalised groups in UNFCCC negotiations and representation of Parties in bodies should be balanced between North and South, taken into account the respective differences.
“Nigerian Government should develop a systematic approach with input from all stakeholders and go to every COP with concrete and common National position.”
The organisation expressed concern that the last two decades have been characterised by unfulfilled promises and commitments by developed countries to Africa including Nigeria in particular hence breeding an atmosphere of ever diminishing trust and confidence in international negotiations processes. It lamented that Nigeria and indeed Africa’s right to development and development efforts have been compromised by the negative impacts of climate change, a situation it argued she least contributed.
The smoke emitted by the refinery’s chimneys, according to them hovers over their area and goes beyond 10 kilometers in radius, affecting many residents in the southern axis of the city.
