The people of Lagos and Nigerians in general have been urged to imbibe the culture of proper waste disposal especially plastics, in order to protect the environment from further pollution.
Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on the Environment, Mr. Babatunde Hunpe, made the call on Tuesday at an event organised by the Ministry of Environment to mark this year’s World Environmental Day.
According to him, protection of the environment from plastic pollution should start from the homes with families sorting their wastes properly before handing them over to disposal vehicles.
“Put plastics in plastic bags, papers in separate bags and others in different bags. If we have all these things sorted out, it would be easier for us to put them in the right place. The recyclable ones will go to the recyclers while the non recyclables will go to the dump sites,” he said.
While encouraging individuals to go into the picking and selling of re-usable plastics to recovery centres, he reiterated the government’s determination to provide more of such centres across the city.
According to Mr. Hunpe, “plans for the establishment of the 57 Plastics Collection centres as promised by the state government have reached the final stage. Before the end of the year, if the plan is not 100 actualised, 50-60 will be ready.”
Speaking on the efforts of the state government to ensure a safe environment for residents, he said, “Lagos State government is always proactive. Before the rains, during the rains and after the rains, we are always clearing our drainages and what we clean out are silts and plastics. We do these from time to time and will continue to do it. But the most important thing is to continue to talk to our people because all these things don’t just find their way into those canals. It is man-made and that’s why we need to continue to educate ourselves.”
He called on the media to join hands with the government by continually enlightening the people.
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He said people should be made to know the importance of repackaging and reusing plastics.
Speaking on the topic, “Single Use Plastics Practices; Implications on Human Environment,” Mr. Babajide Odejobi of the Chemical Society of Nigeria, Lagos State Chapter, noted that plastics were not the issue per se but the chemical components and how they react to and with the weather.
“Some chemical constituents enhance some properties in plastics but in the long run have some harmful effects on the body. Some of the chemicals are not supposed to be exposed to heat or high temperature for long. If that happens, they migrate into the food and if consumed can cause illness especially testicular cancer. It also destroys the endocrine glands – the pancreas, livers,” he said.
On how improper disposal of plastics affect the environment, he said, “when we do not dispose the plastics well; for instance when we burn them, there’s a chemical that it emits into the atmosphere and when inhaled is dangerous to human beings. Plastics also unleash chemicals to the environment through run offs. “We find them in our waterways and sometimes fishes ingest these plastics thinking they are food. Here in Lagos, if you open up some fishes, you’ll see some nylon and this sometimes kill them. So if they are killed off by plastics, we as humans may not see fish to eat. And when we consume the fishes too, the chemicals are passed to us. We are eating contaminated aquatic animals.
“Plastic is harmful to the aquatic world, to the Marine world and to the environment. It contaminates the soil. So, it is harmful. We cannot do without the environment.”
Mr. Odejobi said the best way to dispose plastics was that after use, they should be packed somewhere and when the disposing agents are around, given to them. He counselled against burning of plastics.
He identified the single use plastics to include straws, plastic toothpicks, disposable cups, plates and cutleries, among others and advised against the continued use of such.
In his own lecture titled, “Plastic Pollutions: Exploration and Sustainable Alternatives,” Director, Centre for Environmental Studies and Sustainable Development, LASU, Prof. Babajide O. Elemo, disclosed that the average life span of plastics was 400 years.
Some of the single use plastics which he identified as aiding the pollution of the environment include hair extensions (‘human hair’), chewing gum and disposable diapers among others.
How argued that sweeping and cleaning the streets of Lagos or any part of the world was not the issue, describing it as cosmetics and insisting that the more important issue was managing the waste.
He reiterated the importance of proper disposal of plastic waste, calling on manufacturers, under the umbrella of Manufacturers Association of Nigeria to consider using 1% of their profit to encourage those who want to go into recycling.
As part of activities for the day, some corporate organisations, non-governmental organizations, private oranisatons and individuals were given the Green Award.
This is an award through which the government recognises individuals, organisations, NGOs and corporate bodies that have contributed positively to efforts aimed at protecting the environment.