AZUH LILIAN -2
Environmental advocates have renewed calls for stronger action to protect Nigeria’s waterways, warning that pollution, poor waste disposal and environmental neglect continue to threaten public health, biodiversity and economic development.
Speaking to mark this year’s World Environment Day, environmental stakeholders stressed that safeguarding rivers, lakes and other aquatic ecosystems is essential to achieving a cleaner, healthier and more sustainable future.
They noted that environmental conservation goes beyond keeping communities clean, extending to the protection of water bodies that support agriculture, fisheries, transportation, tourism and livelihoods across the country.
“The Earth provides everything humanity needs to survive. Protecting its natural resources is a shared responsibility that will determine the quality of life for future generations,” the stakeholders said.
According to environmental experts, maintaining clean waterways is critical to ensuring access to safe drinking water, preserving biodiversity, boosting food production and reducing the risks associated with pollution and climate change.
They urged governments, industries and households to adopt better wastewater management practices by ensuring that residential and industrial effluents are properly treated before being discharged into rivers and streams.
They also advocated responsible dredging and proper maintenance of inland waterways to reduce flooding, prevent erosion and improve water flow, while encouraging the deployment of modern waste interception systems to prevent plastics and other debris from reaching the oceans.
The experts emphasised that public participation remains indispensable in protecting the environment, urging citizens to dispose of household waste responsibly, avoid dumping refuse into drains and rivers, report environmental violations and participate in community sanitation and clean-up exercises.
They further highlighted the far-reaching benefits of environmental protection, including improved public health, enhanced biodiversity, greater climate resilience and stronger food security.
To promote sustainable living, they encouraged individuals to reduce their dependence on single-use plastics, support locally produced food, plant more trees, conserve water and compost organic waste to reduce methane emissions from landfills.
They warned that pollution from untreated sewage, industrial waste and agricultural runoff continues to contaminate freshwater sources, posing serious health risks while undermining agricultural productivity and economic growth.
As the world commemorates World Environment Day, environmental advocates called for collective action, stressing that every individual, community, business and government institution has a role to play in preserving the environment.
They said protecting waterways and adopting environmentally responsible practices today would help secure a healthier, cleaner and more prosperous future for generations to come.
