By Jude Njoku & Funmi Olasupo

Going to Apapa from any part of Lagos could be likened to travelling through the biblical “valley of the shadow of death.” The reason for this description is not far-fetched. Apapa is home to the nation’s busiest seaports, tanks farms and other blue chip companies, hence the traffic snarl on virtually all the roads leading into and out of the town.

Energy

It is commonplace to find heavy-duty trailers and articulated vans stuck on the highway for several hours, thereby impeding the free flow of traffic in that axis. The traffic jam along the Oshodi-Apapa expressway, has been directly linked to the congestion in both the Apapa and Tin-Can ports and the long queue by petrol tankers to load their consignment from the tank farms in the neighbourhood

Recurring questions

The recurring question on the lips of concerned stakeholders is “who approved the construction of these tank farms in Apapa and environs? Did the owners carry out the mandatory Environmental Impact Assessment, EIA, required by the law, to determine the effects of such projects on their neighbourhood and how they would be mitigated before the construction of such projects are commenced?

If the EIAs were done, were the reports/recommendations subjected to public scrutiny and open debate as required by the EIA law? What are the measures put in place by the operators of the tank farms to cushion the horrendous impacts of their activities? It is the view of stakeholders that an EIA would have identified the negative multiplier effects of locating tank farms in an already congested neighbourhood.

The EIA Act No 86 of 1986, reveals the likely environmental problems and mitigation measures that are anticipated prior to project implementation and addressed throughout the life circle of the project. Vanguard Homes & Property checks revealed that the Act has been observed more in breach than compliance.

Provisions of revised Act

Against this backdrop, the Federal Government in 2014, set up a Ministerial Committee to review the 29-year old legislation. The Committee which has concluded its assignment, expunged, added and reframed some sections of the existing Act in line with current practices and practical realities.

A stakeholders conference was therefore convened last week to validate the reviewed Act. Speaking a the two-day forum tagged National Stakeholders workshop on the validation of the draft revised Environmental Impact Assessment Act No 86 of 1992 in Abuja, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Environment, Mrs. Nana Fatima Mede explained that the reviewed EIA  would address population and development, climate change and gender issues in Nigeria.

“As a demonstration of our nation’s firm commitment to the implementation of such principle, the Federal government promptly promulgated the EIA Act No. 86 of 1992. The Act makes it mandatory for EIA to be fully applied to major development projects in the private and public sectors of the economy right from the planning stage.

Recognizing that environmental protection and management can only be achieved through collaboration and cooperative efforts, the Federal Ministry of Environment has been working closely with the relevant Federal line ministries, Parastatals, State Ministries of Environment and Local Government Authorities and Non Governmental Organizations for the implementation of the EIA Act.

Considering that the EIA Act has been in active enforcement for well over two decades now, the time is apt for its review, especially now that global environmental issues are undergoing paradigm shifts in several cross sectoral areas like population and development, climate change and gender issues,” the Permanent Secretary said.

In her goodwill message, the former Chairman, House Committee on Environment, Senator Uche Ekwunife, said that the review will help fill up the gaps that exist which have presented a challenge to the effective implementation of EIA in Nigeria.

Ekwunife, who was represented by Mrs. Comfort Asokoro Ogaji, noted that the EIA administration has suffered a number of setbacks due to the extent of coverage of the Act.

“Environmental Impact Assessment is a tool for sustainable development. The primary purpose of the EIA is to ensure that environmental concerns are incorporated into any project planning, design and decision making. A successful updating of the Act will not only update the document to current realities but will serve as the beginning of better EIA administration where both the regulators and the regulated will have a clearer up and up to date document to work with,” she said.