An environmental Non-Governmental Organisation, Human and Environment Development Agenda, on Thursday sought public declaration of the Environmental Impact Assessment report on the Eko Atlantic City project.
Sulaimon Arigbadu, HEDA’s Head of Environment and Sustainable Development, made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Lagos.
NAN reports that the Eko Atlantic City is a project being facilitated by the Lagos State Government in which part of the Atlantic Ocean was reclaimed for massive property development.
According to Arigbadu, the rate of erosion and storm on the adjourning beaches, since the project started is alarming.
He said: “One of our concerns in the community is that the EIA report on Eko Atlantic project was not made public.
“We will like to see what report of the EIA and what remediation is proposed in the event of emergency.
“We will like to know how the excavation of sand from the seabed will affect the ecosystem at the bottom of the ocean and what remediation actions we have for that.
“We will like to know if the making of Eko Atlantic City is implicated in the increasing pressure on the adjourning beaches like the Elegushi and Oniru and Alfa beaches.”
Arigbadu said the rate of coastline erosion on the adjourning areas were quite enormous.
He noted that the NGO did not want to assume that the concerns were the result of the Eko Atlantic City development.
Arigbadu said since the project was been seeing as the possible cause of the pressure, it behoves the government to look at the issues scientifically.
He noted that the NGO was not against any development project, especially one that has adaptation for the Lagos coastline around Victorial Island-Ikoyi-Lekki reclamation.
He said the NGO needed to know the provisions being made to ensure that the human labour pressure around the area would be properly absorbed.
Arigbadu said if the EIA was made public, HEDA would be able to study it and advice government and stakeholders in the project on appropriate remediation.
He said the EIA would also afford the NGO the opportunity to track the implementation of the remediation actions.
According to him, the EIA should be available online.
NAN reports that the project was being developed to stem the sea rise and ocean level around Victoria Island.
This involved reclaiming parts of the bar beach lost over times to the sea and building entirely new city that will be self-sufficient.
NAN