The Lagos State Government on Tuesday restated its commitment to environmental conservation through continuous awareness on the importance of wetlands.
The State Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Tunji Bello, who spoke on the occasion of the World Wetland Day at Alausa, called for the adoption of best practices to protect the ecosystem across the state.
The Commissioner described wetlands as a good source of freshwater, stating that action must be put in place to restore them as well as stop their depreciation and loss.
He said this year’s theme: “Wetland and Water- inseparable and vital for life,” is very apt as it aims to highlight the importance of fresh water to human existence, stressing that the shortage of housing is not as dire as the shortage of freshwater.
He explained that man is known to utilize more fresh water than the ability of the wetlands to naturally replenish and regenerate adding that for this reason it is very important to manage the relationship of man with wetlands so as to ensure continuous availability for man’s life processes.
Bello said: “Wetlands are known to be natural purifiers but the Wetlands in the State are facing an unprecedented pressure for housing occasioned by an increasing human population leading to sand-filling and consequential loss of the wetlands and their ability to naturally purify water and recharge the underground aquifer for various human uses.
“It is important to stress at this point that the shortage of housing is not as dire as the shortage of freshwater.”
Bello said the State Government would continue to address wetland quality decline through wetland restoration plans, continuous cleaning up of wetlands as well as ensure the integration of wetlands into development plans and resource management.
He said the State Government has at different times designated certain wetlands in the State as protected areas to protect their pristine nature and also recently installed signposts in all the wetlands in the State to further protect them from encroachment as well as preserve their natural functions, one of which is water purification.
He stressed that a sector policy on wetland and biodiversity is being developed to ensure balanced development, where the course of nature is adequately mainstreamed into development planning.
He added that this would be achieved through the subjecting of all future developments on or around wetlands to a comprehensive Environmental Impact Assessment process in line with world’s best practices.
He stated that the Lagos State Government has commenced the monitoring of degraded Wetlands in the State with a view of developing regulation for their management in order to prevent further encroachment .
The Commissioner urged all those involved in illegal reclaiming of wetlands to desist from the act, warning residents to desist from the indiscriminate dumping of waste in the wetland and ensure buildings are not constructed on government reserved areas as the State Government remains committed to protecting the wetland and its biodiversity.