Every solution developed has an impact on the particular issue, challenge, or problem it is intended to solve or remedy. The outcome(s), are also expected from such solution(s) for further evaluation.
An environment can be referred to as the immediate surroundings and that condition in which human beings, plants, and animals live, operate, and survive as organisms. It should be noted that it is somewhat comfortable for humans to come to the reality of the importance of the environment in the cycle of life. It should be emphasized hereby that the survival of humanity, animals, plants et Cetra, is solidly dependent on the sustainability of the environment. To this end, human activities on earth particularly in this era of globalization harm the environment and pose a great danger to the survival of humankind, animals, plants, and the planet. Man activities such as, but not limited to deforestation, rural/urban migration, industrial waste, air pollution, overpopulation, water pollution, noise pollution, destruction of mountains, and hills, and oil exploration have hurt and injured and continue to injure the environment with adverse impact on the atmosphere. To this end, the environment can be said to be where we lived and coexist with other species on Earth.
Environmental Challenge.
Environmental challenge refers to those crisis, problem, or issues that pose a danger, or threat and causes damage to mankind and the environment. These challenges include but are not limited to deforestation, overpopulation, poor waste management, climate change, global warming, the greenhouse effect, soil contamination, noise pollution, water pollution, radioactive and plastic pollution, etc. Globally, governments, individuals, and private organizations have continued to put down various measures, policies, and laws to curtail those challenges and to establish a balance between man and the environment.
Those Environmental Challenges that Call for Authorities’ Attention are a tribute to:
Deforestation
Water pollution
Air pollution
Poor waste management practices
Soil Degradation
Overpopulation
Rural-urban migration
Deforestation
Indeed, our once rich-wild forest has been destroyed to some large extent, and these are often made to make cattle ranches, furniture, firewood, charcoal, and building houses. Mountains have been destroyed in many parts of Nigeria to pave ways for tunnels, highways, and also the compaction of the soil to make sand available for buildings’ foundations. Deforestation is an environmental challenge that simply denotes cutting down or clearing trees, bushes, and forests to make wood available for industrial consumption, land for building, and other commercial purposes. It should be noted thereby that trees are been daily cut down in our forests for exportation, and to make them available to foreign industries as raw materials. Many forests have been burned down to make charcoal, and trees for firewood, notably in most of the Northern forests. Hills have been destroyed in Niger, Kwara, Nasarawa state, and also the eastern part of Kaduna, specifically the Chikun local government area to pave way for highways. Notably, Umar Musa Yar’adua Way, and also to make sand available for road construction.
Water Pollution
Water pollution is one of the major environmental challenges, a problem, whereby our local industries daily dumped their industrial waste like paper, plastics, iron, aluminum, and pesticide into the rivers, ponds, streams, etc. to do away with such toxic waste. It should be noted that the dumping of such pollutants harms the water we consume, which has serious consequences for our health. Water pollution is the contamination of the water we consume by substances, which makes the water unsafe for cooking, drinking, swimming, and other hygienic purposes. Currently, clean and safe water is becoming more and more scarce in many parts of Nigeria, courtesy to the waste that has been daily dumped into the river, drainages, and culver’s, most especially in the ghetto areas, thereby contaminating the very water people make use for cooking, drinking, and swimming. In return, it brings about the waterborne disease in the community. Notably, the fish in the Niger-Delta riverine areas and also the crocodiles that are hitherto in the foremost River Kaduna, have since been largely extinct, one of the reasons is the oil exploration and the chemicals, and industrial waste that are been daily dumped into the river. The fact is clean water is becoming a rare commodity in most of Nigeria, as such, authorities concerned must take certain measures to solve the problem of water pollution.
Air Pollution
Air pollution brings about skin rashes, eye irritation, lung disease, a decrease in the quality of air, heart disease, and even the sudden death of human beings. Air pollution can easily contaminate the surface, water, and plants. It refers to the release of pollutants like chemicals, gases, smoke, and toxic fuel in the air, which come with an adverse effect on humans and pose a serious threat to human existence and the planet as a whole. It is also the release of chemicals that are composed of separate particles into the atmosphere, which includes gaseous pollutants such as carbon monoxide and also the emission from industries and increasing use of fossil fuels. The emission from most of our large industries, the alarming number of popular commercial vehicles called “Keke-Napep” that are daily emitting smokes in many of our cities is alarming, the number of motor vehicles users across the nation keep increasing daily, with all emitting polluted smoke to the environment, which has continued to pose great danger to the health of the ecosystem.
Poor Waste Management Practice
Most of our cities have been battling the challenge of poor and improper waste management practices, indeed it has adverse effects on the environment, which include, but not limited to; littering, soil contamination, hazardous waste that is been daily dumped or buried into soil, which in return releases hazardous gases into the atmosphere. Nigeria is currently posed with a crisis of waste management practices. People, individuals, and industries daily improperly dump waste at will, at any given space without consequences. Most of the drainages, and culverts in our cities are been filled up with waste, plastics, and industrial waste, also people defecate so open at any given space, which in turn bring about communicable disease.
Soil Degradation/Desertification
This has to do with the decline in the biological, physical, and chemical condition of the soil caused by nature or improper and poor maintenance of the soil by the activities of humans, which include but are not limited to; rampant use of fertilizer, frequent agricultural practices, overgrazing, urban expansion, oil exploration, deforestation, mining climate change, etc. It should be emphasized that soil degradation has to do with over-grating erosion, soil compaction, monoculture planting, and overexposure to pollutants. Indeed, all these have hurt and continue to injure the very soil we depend on and exploit for farming agricultural products, grazing, mining of substances that include coal, gold, and iron ore, and also an exploration of oil at the coastal areas that has continued to damage the soil. Soil degradation has brought about desertification, which in turn brings about the decline in green areas, and a reduction in food production and also grazing.
Overpopulation
The rapid growth of the human population is one of the greatest environmental challenges that has silently and inevitably been aggravating global warming, loss of habitat, environmental pollution, pressure on scarce resources, clean water, good air, and also a safe, clean environment. Overpopulation has to do with the rapid growth in the population of man without provisions for shelter, food, health care, and education, which in turn gives rise to high rates of mortality, infectious diseases like cholera, diarrhea, nausea, and even Covid-19 which spread faster in an overpopulated area. People give birth to children aimlessly and dump them on the street without provisions to cater to their general well-being. It should be noted that the human population has continued to grow rapidly worldwide, and the Nigerian state is not immune to that. For example, humanity entered the 20th century with 1.6 billion people, and right now, we are more than 6 billion, and by 2050, it is estimated that the global population will hit 10 billion people. Last Nigeria’s population census held in 2006, indicated that Nigeria has a population of 140,431,790 million (NPC), then it was estimated that Nigeria has a population of 218,541,212, million people in 2022 (Nigerian Population Growth Rate). Unrestrained migration of people from rural areas to the metropolis is alarming, as such, policymakers must take drastic and proactive measures to curtail further pressure on the ever-pressurized urban cities.
Rural Urban Migration
Rural-urban migration has to do with the movement of people from the outskirts of the city, and villages to the main city (urban area) in search of greener pastures, social amenities, good life, and at the same time equal opportunity. The unprecedented urban growth has continued to bring about urban expansion with a socio-economic deficit, which has led to the creation of a lively town, unemployment, poverty, hunger, and crime. The growing rural-urban migration in today’s Nigeria is so alarming, even from neighboring countries like Ghana, Togo, Benin, Niger, and Burkina Faso, are trooping in mass into Nigeria, in search of greener pastures, and other socio-economic opportunities. All this harms the ever-growing population of Nigeria.
Proposed Solution(s) to Those Ecological Challenges
Indeed, tomorrow’s growth is under the threat of nature’s revenge due to the activities of humans on earth, but tomorrow can still somewhat escape the revenge of nature if humans take some cautious steps to mitigate how they exploit nature. Environmental challenges will not be that difficult to be solved through innovative ways, organizational structures, government policies, etc. There are many innovative, relevant, and proactive measures to solve environmental challenges such as;
Reforestation
Reforestation is the intentional planting and replanting of trees, plants in an area hitherto used to be a forest or bush, but was cut down or cleared by humans. One of the positive impacts of reforestation is the trees planted provide humans with oxygen, and protect town(s) against storms, tsunamis, etc. The Nigerian government can come up with legislation or policy, whereby the governor of a state will only sign a certificate of occupancy (C of O), of houses, hotels, schools, organizations, and industries only if there is a piece of evidence that they plant at least two trees. State’s Ministry(s) of Housing/Works/Planning/ should only approve building plans only if there’s evidence that there will be enough space for planting trees, and also follow up to enforce that legislation or policy effectively. The State Governments need to start engaging and involving the locals where deforestation is taking place. Policies, laws, and strategies of government are more likely to succeed if the locals buy into those policies or programs. Failure to involve the locals and the authorities concerned will likely result in the exercise in the futility of those policies designed to mitigate deforestation. Government can also encourage people to adopt metal furniture and discourage wood furniture, which will go a long way in discouraging deforestation and also growing the metal industries.
Water Quality Management Control