LEADING ISSUES IN GENERAL STUDIES: HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES

EDITOR:

Director
General Studies Division

The General Studies Division, University of Ilorin, Ilorin.

ENVIRONMENTAL ABUSE AND MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES IN NIGERIA

H. I. Jimoh
Department of Geography. University of Ilorin. llorin.

INTRODUCTION

The term "Environment" is better appreciated as perceived. Thus, the term environment is defiled of a universally acknowledged method of description or definition. For instance, environment has" been conceived as a system within which living organisms interact with the physical elements (Sada, 1988). This means that, environment can be conceived as the conditions, circumstances and influences surrounding and affecting the development of an organism or group of organisms (Strahler and Strahler, 1977). In addition, environment is made up of a number of spheres, which include the hydrosphere, atmosphere, lithosphere and biosphere. Within these spheres are a number of interrelated activities in operation. Consequently, environment is perceived in this chapter as the general surroundings where a number of interrelated activities are taking place within the environmental system and between man and the environment too. From the perspective of physical and cultural landscapes, the physical or natural environment indicates that the environment is in its natural state. The features of the physical environment include rivers and water bodies, trees, hills/mountains, mineral resources such as iron-ore, gold, manganese, diamond, silver, columbite and petroleum among others. The cultural landscape on the other hand denotes that an interaction has taken place between man and his environment. Such activities that are human based include agriculture, mining operations, sinking of bore holes, wells, tree felling, constructions of bridges, houses, road networks and railways among others. (Robinson, 1976). Thus, every organism sees the environment as a resource store where he can conveniently fall back to, for all his needs (Faniran and Ojo, 1980). However, efforts made by man to harness these environmental-based resources have translated into a number of environmental abuses. These abuses arose out of man's ignorance in relating with the environment and disregarding its welfare. These developments therefore constitute the focus of this chapter. However, the next section of this chapter considers the forms of relationship between man and the environment.
THE MODES OF MAN - ENVIRONMENTAL RELATIONSHIPS

Man's relationship with its environment has always changed with time, depending on his understanding and knowledge of the physical environment. However, the natural environment is generally endowed with variable quantity and quality of resources 216

within the space (Simmons, 1981). Thus, man has come to regard his environment as a depot housing his needs and therefore always devising ways of abstracting these -esources within it. The modes of the relationships have been discussed in three phases below (Jimoh, 1999). These phases include the Paleolithic, Neolithic and the Modern ages. a) Paleolithic era: This period marked the era of environmental determinism, where the environment essentially decides to provide for man. In essence, man depended on what the environment provides. This development was due to the low level of man's technological development. Thus, the degree of man's impact or the abuse inflicted on the environment was minimal. b) Neolithic era: This period is the Iron Age when equipment were fabricated witn and :n metais. This was due to some remarkable improvements in man's technological development. Thus, there was a marked interaction between man and his environment. Also, man tended to develop some options of needs outside what the environment offers and proceeded to develop ways of accomplishing such set objectives. c) Modern age: This is the jet age where man decides what to do within and outside his environmental setting. Indeed, this period epitomized a number of abuses inflicted op the environment, many of which are put in place inadvertently.

ENVIRONMENTAL ABUSES
This is the deliberate effort to put environment into optimal use without the slightest consideration for the stress introduced onto the environmental system. For example, soil tilling for agricultural purposes, mining activities, inadequate waste disposal, noise generation, pollution among others greatly abuse the environment in all their ramifications. However, a number of environmental problems ensue due to the abuses meted to the environment in the course of interactions. Usually this scenario emanates from lack of sufficient education on how to relate with the environment (see Jimoh and Ajibade, 1995). The long-standing relationships existing between man and the environment had been one of exploiting the environmental resources to meet man's needs. The implications of this drive manifested in the various types of stress inflicted on the environment usually due to the following: 1. Mineral exploitations leading to environmental degradations: This type of activity largely destroys the beauty of the environment. For example, in the tin mining areas in Jos Plateau, Nigeria, the mining sites are covered with pits that carries large pools of water which in turn serves as breeding points for mosquitoes. In 217

addition, the mining activities have led to the disappearance of a number of habitats and the emergence of bad land topography. Also, the problems created on sites due to petroleum exploitation are no less severe especially in the Eastern axis (Table I).

2. Constructional activities This activity covers events such as houses, road networks, rail .lines, bridges, canals, aqueducts among others which are capable of completely denying surfaces of adequate plant covers. The effects of this type of scenario are many and hazardous. For example, Cooke and Doornkamp (1974). Oyegun (1980, 1983), Jimoh, (1997, 1998) observed that land surfaces without protective covers (plants) are liable to the incidence of severe soil erosion problems. Thus, the constructional activities have not only created the problems of soil erosion but also, it greatly disturbs the ecosystems. Table 1. Environmental impacts of fossil energy resources
S/N Mining Activities
Exploration

General Effects
Landscape disturbance

Specific impacts

1.
2.

Mineral extraction

Aesthetic deterioration of landscape, path construction and trampling in wilderness. Land degradation and Land surface devastation (including erosion), land subsidence, disruption o! ecosystem destabilization drainage systems, deforestation. excessKe water draw down and lowering and contamination of the water table. Gas leaks, oil spills, noise, Thermal body of water ways, increase in and pollution of the air. soil Co2 and Co. ozone layer depletion. and water. acidification of air. soil and water. weather modifications, toxicity hazard to plants and consumers, death of terrestria and marine life, loss of crops and l i \ c stocks. impairment of atmospheric visibility, vehicular accidents, damage tc buildings and machinery. nervous disorder, respiratory diseases, cardiovascular illness, cancer and foo; poisoning.

3.

Processing. Transportation, storage and consumption

Source:NEST(199l).
3. The attitudes on drainage management Drainage systems in this case refer to the gutters and the waterways. It is common to see drainage systems in Nigeria littered with wastes of all types and categories These wastes often lead to their blockages (Table 2).
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Table 2. Types composition and sources of wastes S/N

!.

Types of wastes
Garage

Composition _ ....._ . ._ . _

Source(s)

Food leftovers, food preparation Households wastes, management wastes and (kitchen), restaurants. the sale of wares. stores and markets Combustible papers, carbon, Office, households, market unused papers, wood. rags. etc. Residues from tire cooking, i.e. firewood. used for Kitchens, markets

Rubbish Ashes Street trash Abandoned vehicles and containers

3. 4. 5.

Source: Akinjide (1998).

Leaf litters, corncobs, fruit peels, Restaurants. etc. stores, passersbs , food vendors Unwanted cans, motor cycles and Roadside bicycle parts, wood. logs. etc. mechanics, lumbering activities.

As a matter of fact, wastes are the principal agents that lead to gutter blockages and this is a common occurrence in most Nigerian cities. Also, wastes not only litter the environment but also equally threaten the human health and accelerate the degradation of the nutrient status of soil resource. 4. Attending to the call of nature (ethics) The call of nature to which every man or human being responds to include faeces (bowel decongestion or toiletting), spitting of saliva either due to bad odour perceived or coughing and urinating. Responses to iiiese calls have usually been done with d if regard to their efF:rt;; :-. <:-*; beings ;:, -< Ji as i';-j environment, The inappropriate manner in which many respond to these calls of nature greatly abuses the environment and most often constitute heaith hazards. 5. Waste disposal Olorunfemi and Odita, (1998) observed that rapid population growth coupled with inefficient waste disposal methods and aggravated by inconsistent waste management policies greatly abuse the status of the environment. Indeed. accompanying this type of incident are environmentai deterioration, health hazard problems, disappearance of environmental beauties, flood incidents especially when wastes arc deposited into water ways, surface and sub-surface water pollution, air pollution among others.

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6. The incidents of aoise pollution. The ability of man to reorganize space to taste has led to the emergence of areas known for noise generations. For example, Egunjobi (1988), has observed that market places, motor parks, airports, trains, traffic, power generating plants, .grinding machines, record players/radios, religious centres, food blenders and machine guns among others, are noise generating sources. In these places, noise productions offend man and greatly abuse the expected solitude in an environment. In this view, except when it is most unavoidable, most people prefer to keep away from these areas. This is because, at these points, there is the possibility of going deaf (temporarily or permanently). This scenario is most certain when the tolerable threshold of noise is exceeded. For example, Uchegbu (1998) has observed that noise emanating from trains is ranked as uncomfortable; food blenders, machine guns at close range and heavy traffic are loud and disturbing, while the noise from jet pbne at take-off is painful to the body system. 7. Agricultural practices This activity involves massive forest clearance leading to total exposure of land use types that are in various proportions, especially in Nigeria (Table 3). For example, FAO (1983) observed that in Nigeria, careless exploitation and husbandry has destroyed about 600,000 hectares of forest yearly while the reforestation effort of about 25,000 hectares replenishes only 4% of the loss. This fast declining states of forest resource in Nigeria constitute great threats to soil fertility, desertification incidents, agricultural productivity and in fact, to the quality of life in general (Okafor, 1988). Table 3. Percentage distribution of land use types in Nigeria Land use types Open grassland Wood grassland Woodland Forest Swamp forest Good farmland Marginal farmland Plantation (timber, rubber, oil palm) Water and Urban areas Total Percentage occupied 18.56 26. 13 4.61 4.34 3.18 23.00 18.72 0.32 1.13 100.00

Source: Federal Department of Forestry (1980). as cited in Okafor (1988). 220

In general, the environmental abuses discussed usually results into severe problems. There is the need for a more rigorous technique of managing environmental abuse. Indeed, this is not negotiable. The next section of this chapter will focus on managing environmental abuse.

TECHNIQUES OF MANAGING ENVIRONMENTAL ABUSES

Environmental abuses are many and varied in effects and dimensions. Thus, each environmental abuse requires a unique technique of management. However, a general framework for managing environmental abuses of all categories can be tied to the following arguments as follows. Environmental education efforts: Jimoh and Ajibade (1995) have observed that every environmental related problem can be traced to lack of clear understanding of the nature of environment, its composition, likely environmental stress and the effects of environmental problems on the environment vis-a-vis living organisms. In essence, the need to introduce environmental education in our school's curriculum is strongly advocated as a panacea to solving environmental abuses. Development of awareness: The existence of environmental abuses in the recent times constitutes topical issues among the elitist class in the human environment. For example, it was in the hope of restoring the environmental quality that gave birth to Federal Environmental Protection Agency in Nigeria (Decree 58. 1988). This development can be made more popular and thus warranting public sympathy through public enlightenment campaigns, lectures, distribution of relevant pamphlets, posters, seminars, workshops and media houses. Citing of waste dumps: Waste dumps are usually in the form of incinerators or simple dump sites. The belief is that, when these are strategically located in places within the urban environment, wastes so generated by both households and individual or groups can be put together and deposited at the waste dump sites. However, these waste dump sites should be made functional by regularly clearing the wastes from the dump sites without which the dump sites may translate into health problem /ones. Legal policy frame works: In Nigeria. Government has made efforts to address this abuse through Decree 58 of 1988. This Decree established FEPA and charged it with the responsibility of protecting and developing the environment, by establishing environmental standards. Also, there are the mobile courts that operate on en\ironmental sanitation days. Culprits are-instantly sentenced or punished. Furthermore, during the Buhari-Idiagbon military administration in Nigeria (1984 - 1985). there \\as the introduction of 'War Against Indiscipline ' (WAI). This 221

was developed to checkmate the indiscriminate manner in which the citizenrv was abusing Ihe environmental in all forms. The WAI eventually manifested into War Against Filth. This phase of WAI greatly meted punishments to vfctims of all forms of environmental abuse in Nigeria. General!}1, a better result may be achieved when some of the measures are combined to address the various abuses on the environment. This is like!} to be so. if the '^ensures are strong, purposive and action generating (See FEPA. '90j).

CONCLUSION
Man's environment is a depot capable of meeting all our IKCUS. In an effort to exploit Hiese environmental resources to advantage, a number of abuses thus ensue. The consequences of'these arc several and ha/ardous on boih (lie environment an"' m;<!' Thus, managing these abuses becomes inevitable especiallv as such steps easiK result in the restoration of the environmental quality and the sustenance of the future of the present and the vet unborn generation in Nigeria.

REFERENCES
Akinjide. O. (1988). Current Issues in Nigerian environment. Ibadan. Davidson Press. Cooke. R. U. and Doornkamp. .1. C. (1974). Geomorphology in Environmental Management. An Introduction. .Oxford. Oxford Universitv Press, pp. 22-44. Egunjobi. L. (1988). Urban environmental noise pollution Sada P, O. and Odemerho. F. O. (eels.) hi: Environmental Issues and Management in Nigerian Development. Fvans Brothers Nig. Publishers Ltd. Nigeria. Pp. 88-96.

Faniran. A. and Ojo. O. (1981). Man '.v Physical Environment. An Intermediate Physical Geography, lleinemann Educational Books Ltd.. London, 404 pp.
FAO. (1983). Forest Destruction and Agriculture in Nigeria. Rome. Forestry Research institute of Nigeria. .Annual Report.
FEPA. (1991). The making of the Nigerian Environmental Policy. FFPA Monograph 1.

Jimoh. IT L and Ajibade. L. T. (1995). Environmental Education on soil erosion problems in Nigeria - An Overvieu. ./, Education. 16:39-45. .limoh. H. L (1997). Individual Rainfall Events and Sediment Generation on Different Surfaces in llorin, Nigeria. A Ph.D. thesis submitted to the Department of Geographv. Universitv of llorin. llorin. 220 pp.

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Jimoh. I I . I. (1998). The tolerance range of Land Use Surfaces to Erosion: Implications on Land Resource Management in llorin, Nieria. Ceoreseurch I(2):32-4I. .Jimoh H. I. (1999). Man - Environment Interactions. Jiinoh H. I. and I. P. Ifabiyi (eds.) hi: Contemporary Issues in Environmental Studies. Forthcoming. NEST. (1991). Nigeria's Threatened Environment. A National Profile. A NEST Publication. Nigeria, p. 35. Olorunfeini. J. I . and Odila. C. O. (1998). Land use and solid waste generation in llorin. Kuara State. Nigeria. The Environmentalist 18:67-75. Okafor. \:. O. (1988). Rural Development and the Environment. Sada P. O. and Odemerho. I . O. (eds.) hi: Environmental Issues and Management in Nigerian Development. Evans Brothers Nig. Publishers Ltd. Nigeria. Pp. 152-153. Oyegun. R. O. (1980). .'The effects oj tropical rainfall on sediment yield from different land use surfaces in sub-urban Ibadan. A Ph.D. thesis submitted to the Deparfoipt of'Gcograpln. ! 'niversily of Ibadan. Ibadan. Nigeria. Pp. 21-151. Oyegun, R. O. (1983). Erosion - Active surfaces on a pediment slope. J. Trop. Agric. 6(l):5355. Robinson. H. (1976). Economic Geography. Macdonald and Exans Ltd. Plymouth. 299pp. Sada.-P. O. (1988). Development and the environment A contemporarx framework for environmental management. Sada P. O. and Odemerho. E. O. (eds.) [n: Environmental Issues and Management in Sigerian Development. Evans Brothers Nig. Publishers Ltd. Nigeria. Pp. 27. Simmons. I. G. (1981). The Ecology of Resources. Eduard Arnold Publishers Ltd. London, pp.349-374. Strahler. A. N. and Strahler. A. H. (1977). Geography and Man's Environmcm John Wiley & Sons Lid. London. Uchegbu. S. N. (1998). Environmental Management and Protection. Precision Printers and Publishers. Enugu. Nigeria, pp. 9-10. 223