Aderonke Okoya is a Professor of Environmental Chemistry and first feminine Director of the Institute of Ecology and Environmental Research, Obafemi Awolowo College. On this interview, she tells GRACE EDEMA that Nigeria prefers utilizing imported concepts to unravel native issues, which ends up in confusion
What are the main environmental challenges/issues in Nigeria?
Environmental challenges in Nigeria stem from a mixture of things together with fast urbanisation, industrialisation, poor waste administration, local weather change, deforestation, and land degradation, we even have air and water air pollution, oil air pollution, desertification, and a number of others that we can not exhaust from this dialogue for now.
Is Nigeria utilising the existence of the Institute of Ecology and Environmental Research, OAU, for its Environmental advantages?
The problem of whether or not Nigeria is utilising the existence of the Institute of Ecology and Environmental Research for its environmental advantages is only a minute a part of an even bigger downside in Nigeria.
Why did I say is a minute one? The problem on the bottom in Nigeria is that we don’t even utilise the outcomes of any analysis in fixing our native issues or outcomes from most researchers in Nigeria in fixing our native issues. We choose utilizing imported concepts in fixing our native issues and this sort of factor brings confusion as a result of we’d like to have the ability to determine our strategies of fixing issues and utilise it accordingly. We need to import excellent options to an imperfect setting.
As to if Nigeria is utilising the existence of an Institute of Ecology or not, on a bigger scale, the federal government, and trade haven’t been utilising the outcomes of analysis carried out in Nigeria on Nigerian soils to suggest insurance policies and implement insurance policies.
Till we begin doing that, we won’t even have the ability to do the form of analysis that can have an effect on our financial system, have an effect on the environment. For instance, if an trade has a problem in managing its waste or managing any of the waste generated of their trade, there isn’t a legislation or coverage that can make that trade to search for an answer throughout the native establishments in Nigeria. Additionally, a larger share of their analysis and growth must be carried out in our establishments in Nigeria. Industries are usually not considering that there’s a have to do something or carry something to the establishments and universities in Nigeria, to assist them suggest options. And it’s only after they carry their challenges and sponsor it that the researchers and their college students can perform analysis on the challenges and suggest answer(s) to these issues for the reason that analysis was been sponsored.
Then again, if we (researchers) decide the issue perhaps a researcher simply determine an issue and also you now attempt to give it to postgraduate college students to work on it, they could not have the ability to do it to the extent that it will likely be helpful to the trade as a result of it’s going to now be self-sponsored and a pupil that’s sponsoring a challenge can’t be mandated to do it to unravel real-life issues.
He might be able to use it to the extent of getting the certificates however when it’s for fixing a real-life downside, it must be a sponsored analysis by the federal government, trade or a philanthropist. They should get to that degree of claiming that is our downside, can you’re employed on it for us? The federal government and trade want to do that earlier than they’ll have the ability to successfully utilise the existence of any institute and that is additionally relevant to all different departments in any establishment.
Do you assume Chemistry has any relevance to Environmental Management and Administration?
The superb instance on the relevance of chemistry to environmental management and administration is the difficulty of Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane pesticide that was banned a few years in the past. DDT was a chemical that was used to manage pest in the home or on the farm and this DDT was recognized to be persistent within the setting, it was meant to unravel an issue however finally folks realised that it was additionally creating one other downside. Chemists produced DDT, they went again to the lab to see what could possibly be executed to unravel the issue additional and so they went forward to supply Methoxychlor. Methoxychlor can also be one other pesticide that the chemists manipulated the construction of DDT to supply and this Methoxychlor can even remedy the issue that initially, they had been focusing on DDT to unravel and on the similar time not creating the issue that DDT was creating when it was been used. Because of this, it was banned. Chemists created DDT to unravel an issue, the DDT solved the issue, but additionally created one other downside, so chemists went additional to supply an alternative choice to DDT to realize their aim and this they did. So, chemistry has the options to finish environmental issues or challenges.
Lately, Lagos and Oyo States banned using Styrofoam, kindly communicate to this?
The current ban of Styrofoam in Lagos and Oyo States for my part is in the precise course.
Scientifically, it has been confirmed that Styrofoam is gradual to degrade and it ceaselessly leaches chemical into the setting. Throughout the manufacturing of Styrofoam, hydrocarbons, that are launched into the air produce hazardous pollution and this may impair the lung and result in respiratory diseases amongst different issues.
How can the environmental challenges/ issues in Nigeria be solved?
As an environmentalist, we don’t cease at figuring out environmental challenges. It’s additionally of curiosity to us to suggest options to this problem. These environmental challenges are numerous, each has other ways of tackling it. For instance, we have to follow sustainable land use follow, reforestation and stricter enforcement of anti-reforestation loss as a way to mitigate the issues or challenges of deforestation and land degradation.
Like I stated, there are numerous options. In Nigeria, we’ve extreme air and water air pollution and this isn’t farfetch, it’s because of the industrial actions, poor waste administration and use of soiled gasoline for cooking and transportation. Air air pollution from industrial emissions and automobiles’ exhaust which have an effect on public well being.
As for water air pollution, among the fertilisers, pesticide, herbicide that we apply on our soils have an effect on our water our bodies and the implications of that is that, air and water air pollution are hyperlink to well being points akin to respiratory illness and contamination of meals and water our bodies, thereby, endangering the lives of thousands and thousands.
What’s the method out?
Implementation and enforcement of air pollution management legal guidelines is vital. A few of these legal guidelines are there however we have to implement the legal guidelines. We have to implement the legal guidelines of air pollution; we have to implement the funding in cleaner expertise in our industries. We have to additionally promote renewable vitality sources in different to fight air and water air pollution. I need to expatiate on funding in cleaner applied sciences as a result of this is among the issues we do in our residence analysis, there have been completely different standard methods of treating water for water provide. Analysis has introduced out new applied sciences that may make us do it higher than the traditional methodology and even we use strong waste within the setting and develop it into absolvent to deal with our water and make the water provide higher, a few of these strategies at the moment are seen as a multi-achievement strategy, fixing the issues of strong waste administration and concurrently as a self-water air pollution issues. We have to evaluate our strategies of dealing with a few of these issues, we don’t have to remain on the identical time even after centuries of analysis has gone into it.
You’re the primary feminine director and first feminine Professor of the Institute of Ecology and Environmental Research OAU, how have you ever coped amongst males?
As the primary feminine director of the Institute of Environmental Research of Obafemi Awolowo College and likewise the primary professor in addition to alumnus, which is seconded to the primary director, I’ve by no means had any problem working with males and that may be attributed to my background as a result of I used to be not introduced as much as be intimidated by any gender. I attended a blended main college; an Anglican Major College and I proceeded to Olivet Baptist Excessive College, Oyo, for my secondary college, which can also be a blended college. I’ve no problem interacting with my male counterpart and whereas rising up, intimidation was by no means a case as I used to be born in a household with many males, and it didn’t have an effect on me educationally or in any other case. I don’t have problem dealing with them, I consider I can do no matter factor they’ll do if I need to do it. I’ve been in a position to cope amongst them and as a director have been in a position to handle them there isn’t a problem, I’m as much as the duty.
Why did it take so lengthy earlier than having a feminine director within the Institute?
Having a feminine director is a operate of getting a feminine educational employees. From the onset, it took them so lengthy to have feminine educational employees of their midst and the second they bought a feminine educational employees, the feminine educational employees grew within the profession. I, as a feminine director didn’t keep for lengthy earlier than I turned a feminine director.
How can feminine teachers and profession ladies attain the peak of their career as you might have?
My recommendation for feminine educational and profession ladies hoping to achieve the peak of their career is one, they must be onerous working and refuse to be intimidated. If they’re but to be married and they should, they need to marry proper as a result of as a scientist it isn’t simple in case you marry incorrect.
What main strides would you want to realize because the director of the Institute?
As the present director of the institute, one main stride I’ll like to realize is to make sure that the picture of the institute is improved. I’ll like to make sure that the whole lot that must be executed to make me obtain our mandate has the centre of excellence is the main target, so long as it’s inside my capability. I may even encourage as many alumni of the institute to work in the direction of having an endowment for the Institute of Ecology and Environmental Research, to maintain the picture of the institute.
