LASEPA sensitises public, industries on pollution control

As part of its mission to safeguard healthy environment, Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA) has urged members of the public, especially manufacturers to be relentless in pollution control.

The agency, at its recent Environmental Compliance Workshop 2015, said many industries were though beginning to comply with safety guidelines, but there is much to be done by all the stakeholders.

General Manager of LASEPA, Adebola Shabi, observed that 228 industries have thus far complied with pollution control measures of the state.

In the last 15 years, Shabi said, the level of compliance was indeed low for reasons not unconnected with non-availability of compliance tools in waste management, pollution abatements, effluent treatments and recycling technologies. In some instances where tools were available, they are usually ineffective and obsolete.

“The good news for all industries today is that environmental sustainability can be achieved through Environmentally Sound Technology (EST), effective Environmental Management System (EMS) and Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP).

“Since last year that we had the Environmental Compliance Workshop, I have visited about 50 industries and I saw that the level of compliance was improving,” he said.

He commended industries that have in the last one year, have put in place abatement facilities like waste water plant among others in their production process.

“Last year, we have about 138 industries that have turned to gas. As we speak today, there are 228 companies that have turned from diesel to gas. Their forklift that were using diesel before, have also turned to gas, which is clean and healthy for us.”

Shabi further said that the onus is on all to protect the environment of today without compromising that of the future. Everything must be clean and healthier today for the future generations to meet something good, he said.

“Others in the past protected the environment for us and we met it good. So what about the future generations? It is for us to show love to our environment, the we way we show love to our children.

“Should this tripod (Environmentally Sound Technology (EST), effective Environmental Management System (EMS) and Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) be well budgeted for in the company’s year plan, then the road to environmental sustainability is nearer than ever. It will always be a mirage as long as insincerity and lack of goodwill to enforce compliance persists among stakeholders. The journey of a million miles starts with a single step,” he said.

The LASEPA boss said though pollution comes with population growth, urbanization, transportation and industrialisation, the control agency remains up to the task to ensure sustainable good environment.

LASEPA is the environmental regulator for Lagos State of Nigeria. This environmental objective is in accordance with the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Section II, 20 which states: “The State shall protect and improve the environment and safeguard the water, air and land, forest and wild life of Nigeria.”