‘Green infrastructure will mitigate flood in Lagos’

Worried by recent flooding in Lagos, which affected properties and residents in Marina and other parts of Lekki, engineers have called on the Lagos State Government to invest in green infrastructures to forestall future recurrence and save the state from sinking.

A Senior lecturer at Maritime University Delta State, Sunday Egbiki made the call at the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) week in Lagos.

Speaking on “Green buildings and infrastructures: Panaceas for mitigating climate actions”, he stated that the Lekki region is two metres below sea level, which puts residents at great risk of sinking.

Egbiki said: “That is something to worry about in the near future, which is why as engineers we are advocating green infrastructures to control floods, disasters and solve climate challenges.”

He warned that if nothing is done to embrace Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 13), which urges action to combat climate change and its impacts, it might put Lagosians at huge risk of relocating the whole city.

Some independent reports by Climate Central, a scientific organisation based in the United States, had predicted that half of 300 million people living in areas that are flooded at least once a year would be submerged by a high tide line by 2050.

It also warned that heavily populated coastal cities like Lagos, which is home to more than 18 million people, could be entirely underwater in the next 30 years.

Essentially, the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF) in its recent report had expressed fears that Lagos and other coastal cities that are less than one metre above sea level could be submerged by 2050 if the ocean surge continues.

Reacting to the reports, the chairman of the NSE Apapa branch, Mr. Christian Ufot said the activities of Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA), are more pronounced but no obvious actions are geared towards drainage construction to ensure life and property is secured when it rains.

Ufot said, “LASBCA, an agency that is in charge of building construction, is focusing on buildings that should be properly constructed to avoid collapse. A few days ago I saw some buildings that were pulled down because they were not properly constructed. But what are we doing about clearing our drains to avoid floods when there is rainfall? This is the need to clear our drainage. That way we will avoid people losing lives and properties when there is rainfall.”