Admiralty Lawyers Society of Nigeria (ALSN) has called on the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) and other relevant agencies to rise to the responsibility of enforcing the provisions of the international convention on the elimination of pollution of waterways and marine areas as well as ensuring the safety of waters.

The society gave this pledge to commemorate World Maritime Day with the theme, ‘MARPOL at 50 – Our Commitment Goes On’.

The President, ALSN, Angus Obinna Chukwuka, in a statement, lamented that Nigeria’s marine environment is daily polluted by the dumping of empty water bottles, cans and other plastic wastes, resulting in the poisoning and death of aquatic lives.

“Incidents of dump of toxic waste products along the coastal and marine areas by companies and individuals abound. These have similar effects as the sachet water bags and other plastics deposited at the marine environment.

“Perhaps the most pronounced of the marine pollution types seem to be that of pollution of the seas by oil-carrying vessels. This leads to colossal loss of plant and animal lives in the sea. Malnutrition and food poison become imminent. The seawater is no longer safe for human consumption. Also, agricultural materials and growth are seriously hampered due to ecological menace,” he said.

He noted that the major challenges are poor enforcement of environmental laws, noting that the law enforcement institutions are weak and show a lack of capacity to protect the nation’s marine environment from decay.

“It also seems that there is inadequate orientation of the civil populace on how the marine environment can be preserved,” he said.

He therefore called on the government to overhaul the maritime institutions and provide them with newer and better gadgets as well as funds to enable them to patrol the coastal and maritime space to prevent and checkmate marine pollution.