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Community cries out for help against industrial pollution 

By Murtala Adewale, Kano
25 November 2017   |   4:34 am
Face with the problems toxic waste and industrial pollution, residents of Wudil community in Kano State have cried out for urgent intervention from the federal government to save them from the environmental disaster ravaging the area.


Face with the problems toxic waste and industrial pollution, residents of Wudil community in Kano State have cried out for urgent intervention from the federal government to save them from the environmental disaster ravaging the area.

Wudil community, about 40 kilometers from Kano city, is known for fishery business for several years, on which majority of households rely as source of livelihood, besides the traditional crop farming.

But the booming occupation is being threatened by industrial effluent from tanneries and other manufacturing companies in the state.
Addressing journalists yesterday at a press conference organised by Nigerian Environmental Society (NES), Kano State chapter, leader of Wudil Social Forum, Alhaji Ali Ahmad Wudi, lamented the devastating ecology the community has faced for years and the little or no intervention from government.

Ali narrated how Wudil became endangered a few years ago when industries and manufacturing companies in Sharada and Challawa channeled untreated toxic waste and effluent into Kano Rivers, which flows into the community.

He said over the years, the community has suffered strange sickness, which he claimed led to loss of lives, with many still critically ill as a result.

Besides, he claimed that the devastating effect of toxic waste channelled into Wudil Rivers has ruined the traditional source of livelihood in the community, as all aquatic lives could no longer survive in the contaminated water, just as it is also contaminating the surviving plants from few farms in the community.

“We have being experiencing this situation for over five years now without any intervention. Only God know how many people that have lost their lives as a result of strange sickness,” he noted.

Ali regretted that several complaints lodged before the state Ministry of Environment have not yield positive results, as the discharge continues unabated.

Council member of Environmental Management Association of Nigeria and Head, Department of Environmental Management, Bayero University, Dr. Luka Fitto-Buba, who confirmed the devastating effect of contaminated water, called for urgent intervention.

He noted that environmental law is clear on the mandate of industries and manufacturing companies regarding treatment and detoxification of waste before disposing into communities.

Fitto-Buba appealed to the federal government to enforce the relevant environmental laws to save the community from endemic ecological disaster.

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