From February 13th through the 16th 2023, Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria represented by Melody Itiswell at The GAIA Nigeria Workshop with the theme: CSOs Engagement with National and International Plastic Policy Processes.
The well-attended workshop had about 12 Member groups from across Nigeria, GAIA Africa representatives from Ghana, Media Houses, and some virtual participants.
We had an intense conversation with some government institutions and private bodies such as the Lagos State Ministry of Environment, Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency, LASEPA, Lagos State Waste Management Authority, Lagos State Recyclers Association, and Lagos State Waste Pickers Association.
In an intervention made by Melody during the workshop, she lamented the bad state of the government-managed dumpsites located in different areas of the states in Nigeria, which is an eyesore and a major source of pollution. Their impact range from bad smell/odours, surface & groundwater contamination, the release of greenhouse gases, hazards caused by burning the refuse, loss of vegetation, Soil contamination, etc.
She went further to say that there’s an urgent need for the rehabilitation and or closure of these waste dump sites while advocating for the creation of “Resources Sites”. Resource sites would see the repurposing of what we may have termed waste because such materials or products we have deemed no longer useful or are unable to meet their intended. These resources/materials/products can be used in remanufacturing the same product or other useful products, like converting organic waste into compost products.
Melody advocated the government should give more attention to waste management, there setting good examples for the public to follow.
At the end of the event, a communique was made that demanded the government to place a ban on single-use plastics, encourage the Zero Waste initiative, create room for public participation at all levels of policy development and implementation, ensure the proper integration of waste pickers into the waste management chain, strengthen wider dissemination of information to the public, and to say No to any incineration plant because aside being a false solution the cost of building one plant is enough to deal with waste from its source.
We also embarked on a field visit to LASEPA where we made a presentation of the Zero Waste Guideline booklets and encouraged them to extend their efforts (the good practice of a ban on single-use plastics and nylon within their office environment, the Trash to Cash initiative, and the mini effluent treatment plant) to other Government institutions and the state at large.