Mr Erasmus Ekpang, the Director-General of Cross River Environmental Protection Agency (CREPA), has sought the partnership of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) in promoting a healthy environment in the state.
Ekpang, who led the agency’s delegate on a visit to the Port Services Controller, Mr Umar Sidi, on Wednesday in Calabar, said that CREPA needs the support of NIMASA in the state.
He told the Port Services Controller that the agency which was newly created by the state government was saddled with the responsibility of protecting the environment and promoting its cleanliness in Calabar and the state in general.
The Director-General expressed the need for both agencies to synergise in developing, protecting and promoting a healthy environment in the state.
“I have come on this visit so that we can liase together to ensure that waste from the coastline are evacuated properly so as to protect the ecosystem and prevent pollution of the on-shore and off-shore,” he said.
Also, Mr Odidi Odidi, a Director in CREPA, informed the agency that the state had well equipped laboratory which could also be a point of synergy in achieving partnership between both agencies.
Responding, Sidi congratulated the Director General on his recent appointment and also assured him of NIMASA’s support in their activities in the state.
He said that while NIMASA executes its function in waste evacuation from the waterways, CREPA must also achieve the mandate of keeping a clean environment around the water ways so as to enhance the beautification of the state.