Don harps on tree planting to tackle flooding, heatwaves in Lagos
An academic, Prof. Sylvester Egwu, has stressed the importance of reforestation and tree planting to address flooding and heatwaves in Lagos.
Egwu, Executive Director, Environment Aware and
Restoration Network (EARN), made the call in an interview with the news reporters on Thursday in Lagos.
The don said reforestation in urban Lagos would help to check heatwaves, flooding and deforestation, while preserving wildlife and biodiversity.
According to him, Lagos is a densely populated city with fewer trees to provide coverage for homes, schools, hospitals and offices.
He said trees could also help to reduce the effects of rising temperatures, variable weather and urban heat island effects.
Egwu said reforestation of urban Lagos could be achieved through tree planting in approved locations and by homeowners.
“Trees absorb Carbon dioxide (CO2) and give Oxygen (O2).
“There are three ways of removing carbon dioxide from the environment: sequestration, reducing dependency on fossil fuel and tree planting.
Newsmen report that CO2 sequestration is the process of capturing carbon dioxide from industrial sources or the atmosphere and storing it securely to prevent it from warming the earth.
“Nigeria does not have the technology for sequestration and cannot remove fuel from its economy. So, the only option is tree planting,” he said.
Egwu said EARN, as a non-governmental organisation, was complementing Nigeria’s efforts to ensure that the Global Reforestation Campaign of the Climate Change Conference of Parties worked for the country.
He said wildlife and biodiversity brought balance to nature and needed to be protected.
Egwu said EARN was partnering with the Lagos Ministry of the Environment to realise the state’s tree-planting policy.
He said the partnership involved joint assessment of locations and the types of trees suitable for the locations, as well as nurturing and maintaining them for a year.
The professor said once a location was approved and accepted by all parties, the NGO would procure and plant the trees.
“Many people still do not understand the importance of tree planting.
“Trees absorb CO2. At least, four trees will remove about 100kg of CO2 from the environment.
“Without more trees in Lekki, Ikeja, Ajegunle and other vulnerable areas, the next heavy rain will mean more houses destroyed and more schools closed.
“We need to be kind to the environment so that the environment will be kind to us,” he said.
He, however, urged corporate bodies, individuals and homeowners to join the tree-planting campaign to bring balance to nature.
Egwu urged the government to take urgent steps to increase tree planting to remove CO2 and reduce temperature rise, heatwaves, deforestation, famine and diseases.