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 of Environment Aware and Restoration Network (EARN), made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
According to News Agency of Nigeria, Egwu explained that reforestation in urban Lagos would help to check heatwaves, flooding, and deforestation, while preserving wildlife and biodiversity. He noted that Lagos is a densely populated city with fewer trees to provide coverage for homes, schools, hospitals, and offices. Trees could also help to reduce the effects of rising temperatures, variable weather, and urban heat island effects.
Egwu stated that 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),” he said, adding that there are three ways of removing carbon dioxide from the environment: sequestration, reducing dependency on fossil fuel, and tree planting. The professor pointed out that Nigeria lacks the technology for sequestration and cannot remove fuel from its economy, making tree planting the only viable option.
Egwu highlighted that EARN, as a non-governmental organization, was complementing Nigeria’s efforts to ensure that the Global Reforestation Campaign of the Climate Change Conference of Parties worked for the country. He emphasized that wildlife and biodiversity brought balance to nature and needed to be protected. EARN was partnering with the Lagos Ministry of the Environment to realize the state’s tree-planting policy, which involved joint assessment of locations and the types of trees suitable for them, as well as nurturing and maintaining them for a year.
The professor further elaborated that 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,” Egwu stated. He warned that without more trees in areas like Lekki, Ikeja, and Ajegunle, the next heavy rain could lead to 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 added.
Egwu urged corporate bodies, individuals, and homeowners to join the tree-planting campaign to bring balance to nature. He also called on the government to take urgent steps to increase tree planting to remove CO2 and reduce temperature rise, heatwaves, deforestation, famine, and diseases.