By Olamide Francis
Of all the kinds of pollution confronting the world today, plastic pollution has consistently been a major concern. The reason isn’t far-fetched. As human civilization extends, industrialisation is engendered and new industries – mostly needing plastics along the line production – emerges. Also, plastic waste, no matter the quantity can exist in the ocean or wherever for centuries because of its high biodegradability ability.
In some parts of the world, alternatives to plastics are being encouraged for usage and recycling and reuse of plastics are aggressively buttressed. In an effort to comply with the United Nation’s 2108 43rd World Environment Day theme “Beat Plastic Pollution”, many companies have replaced plastic packaging materials with paper and other easily recyclable and reusable materials. And many social and environmental advocacies have shifted focus to plastic pollution in order to help curb this menace.
Nigeria generates some 32 million tonnes of waste per year, of which 2.5 million tonnes is plastic waste. In Lagos state alone, 14,000 metric tonnes of wastes are daily generated, out of which 3,500 metric tonnes are recyclables like plastics, bottles and papers and that this would pose serious dangers to the environment if not properly checked. The country’s disposal, recycling and waste management system is very inefficient, dealing with both plastic and non-plastic waste, most of which (70%) ends up in landfills, sewers, beaches and water bodies. The government has made a lot of promises in a bid to reduce the use of plastics but it appears nothing substantial is being done to match their promises with actions.
An Expert’s Opinion
In a recent interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), environmentalist, Mr Gafar Odubote, has urged governments at all levels to be more decisive on enforcement of environmental laws and policies to tackle the growing plastic pollution in the country.
According to him, there are lots of environmental laws and policies on plastic wastes which are not being enforced and implemented.
“We need someone to hold people responsible for indiscriminate littering of our environment with plastic wastes, just as we have a task force for people crossing major roads where there are pedestrian bridges.
“Sometimes, the government is not deliberate about enforcing plastic wastes laws by imposing sanctions on defaulters. Whereas, enforcement will bring about behavioural change on plastic pollution,” the expert said.
Odubote also called for the sanctioning of plastic pollution defaulters to deter Nigerians from ‘waste blindness’ (a situation where people are oblivious of waste in their environment).
“People should be sanctioned for littering the streets with plastic wastes; there should be a task force to enforce and curb pollution.
“If there is a task force on plastic pollution, Nigerians will comply, because no one likes to be sanctioned for breaking the law.
“We should fine people for indiscriminate littering of plastic wastes; the effects of climate change realities are dawning on us every day, we need to be proactive.
“The government also needs to be involved in plastic wastes sensitisation. We should have jingles and adverts on all media platforms to sensitise the populace on the damage of plastic wastes to the ecosystem.
“We need to enforce the law so that Nigerians are aware of the dangers of plastic wastes,” Odubote said.
He, however, said that banning plastic was not feasible, following the COVID-19 effects on the economy.
“It is not economically-friendly, as much as it is environmentally beneficial. But we need to imbibe a sustainable approach to plastic wastes,’’ he said.
The expert added that government should not wait until plastic pollution became a pandemic before necessary actions were taken.
Non-governmental and Government Efforts
In February 2021, The Coca-Cola Foundation, in partnership with the Statewide Waste and Environmental Education Project (SWEEP), commenced the long-awaited environmental-protective programme tagged “Waste In The City” aimed at unclogging blocked drainages and canals by extracting PET bottles, cans and other plastic waste, recycling them through accredited off-takers while providing economic empowerment for youth and women across target communities in Lagos State.
In Nigeria, the Federal Executive Council (FEC) in October 2020 validated a policy to improve plastic waste management. The strategy was validated, just three months after the approval of a law on solid waste management. The legislation approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) and initiated by the Nigerian Federal Ministry of Environment, aims at improving plastic waste management in the most populous country on the African continent.
Nigeria’s plastic waste law is also expected to bolster financial institutions that already support many recycling projects in the country. This is the case of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) which granted (in September 2020) a loan of US$39 million to Engee PET Manufacturing Company Nigeria for the construction of a continuous polymerisation PET resin plant in Ogun State, in south-western Nigeria. The facility, which is expected to be fully operational within 2 years, will draw more than 20% of its raw material from local plastic waste, thus helping to structure the recycling industry in Nigeria.