By Awyetu Asabe Hope
The National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency has announced plans to begin enforcing the Extended Producer Responsibility guidelines to tackle environmental pollution and strengthen waste management across Nigeria.
Director-General of NESREA, Dr Innocent Bariate-Barikor, disclosed this on Tuesday in Kano during a regulatory dialogue on the implementation of the National Environmental (Battery Control) Regulations, 2024.
Under the EPR framework, producers, importers and brand owners will be legally responsible for the entire lifecycle of their products, particularly plastic packaging, and must fund and participate in Producer Responsibility Organisations to manage waste collection, recycling and consumer awareness.
Bariate-Barikor described EPR as a global best practice that promotes shared responsibility among government, industry and consumers while supporting a circular economy.
He said the agency’s goal is not to hinder businesses but to ensure sustainable environmental practices, stressing that unchecked exploitation of natural resources would have consequences for everyone.
According to him, the dialogue was organised to sensitise stakeholders ahead of enforcement and clarify their roles under the battery control regulations, which seek to minimise pollution throughout the battery lifecycle by enforcing the polluter-pays principle and extended producer responsibility.
The NESREA boss said the agency has registered the Alliance for Responsible Battery Recycling as the Producer Responsibility Organisation for Nigeria’s battery sector and urged manufacturers, importers, collectors, aggregators and recyclers to work with the body to meet regulatory requirements.
Executive Secretary of the Alliance for Responsible Battery Recycling, Miranda Amachree, said many operators in the battery value chain were yet to register, calling for support from the Nigeria Customs Service and the Standards Organisation of Nigeria to identify importers and manufacturers and curb non-compliance.
She also urged NESREA to continue supporting approved renewable energy operators through battery take-back programmes.
Also speaking, GIZ Clean Energy Training and Management Adviser, Idiongoabasi Jackson, reaffirmed the organisation’s commitment to providing technical and strategic support to NESREA and other stakeholders to strengthen environmental protection and regulatory implementation.
