OUR ENVIRONMENT, OUR FUTURE
The projection is scary and if we did not do anything there will be more
plastic than fish in the world’s oceans by 2050, just 32 years away.
Every year, more than eight million tonnes of harmful plastic waste used by man end up in the oceans. I urged the world to beat plastic pollution noting that “we all have a role to play in protecting our only home.
Our world is swamped by harmful plastic waste”. To demonstrate leadership, we have to abolished using plastic bottles. The world environmental day has helped to raise awareness and generate
political momentum around global environmental concerns.
The celebration is another opportunity to draw our attention to the
devastating effect of erosion in Anambra State which has over 960 active erosion sites. The menace has continued to deplete my state Anambra state in south Eastern Nigeria the state’s landmass. Just two weeks ago the Governor signed a N9 billion contract for intervention in six erosion sites in the state. The remediation is being done in collaboration with World Bank’s NEWMAP initiative. It’s obvious that the enormity of devastation is beyond the resources of the state.
The Federal government should seriously consider the job creation
opportunities offered by environmental menace. For instance, India is today building roads from plastic waste. Collectors pick waste plastics from users, recycle them and sell to road builders who use them to build durable roads across India, thereby reducing the influx of waste material into the environment and creating job opportunities for Indians.
In Nigeria, we still feel very much comfortable to toss our plastic waste
into the nearest drainage system, with no regards for the consequences of our actions. When these drainage get blocked we are left at the mercy of flood after any rainfall.
The likes of Bilikiss Adebiyi-Abiola of Wecyclers, are doing wonders in
waste management. An idea she developed while she was still a student has earned her business deals with the Lagos State Government and Guinness PLC. She saw a problem with the environment and she decided to create a solution.
Today should be another opportunity for us to look around us, see those environmental problems we face and strive to provide solutions for them. The ecosystem provides varieties of job opportunities that youths can cash in on.
The behavioural make up of every man comes through the genetic and the environmental influences. The environment contributes most in nurturing the personality of a man. We therefore need a safe environment where potentials can manifest without hazards.
If we fail to protect, secure, and develop our environment, it will affect
the personality of our citizens. Let’s therefore make our environment a
safe haven where trust, love, unity and progress will bloom. Together we can create a better environment and invariably a better future.
Thanks
Nwankwo Chinedu Odidika,
ARP RC Awka main community, south eastern, Nigeria.