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Environment
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environment@dailytrust.com HOTLINE: 08036417326
EnvironlTlent issu 5 beyond tree lantin By Vtlaor Q>car IIdriJ;o
T
plains.
REE planting by ilSdf is nOI enough 10 Iran.5form
ariel regioN into lush green lh~rc
is the need, for the
people: around lhese trees 10 know 001'110 mwage. not just the planted IUd bUi aU other rcsoun:es such as aV"dilabk water, livestock, and other natural resources.. Trees n.."'Cd to be properly nw-路 nu-ed and m:Uflwinc:d such dun Ihcy become resilient to environmc:nl3l IlllZ.O.nis and achK'.:ve the purpose for \\h ich!hey were planted. EnvirorIDlenl, goes bI:)ond uce p1allling. lltcre are other issues such as animal heal th, erosion, climate ind~ conflicts anddisaslers,
agriculture. social and economic problems Ind uced by environmenlui abuse. Then tJ\aC is !he small llUllli!l' of climate change and lUlSUSl3.inable
!.kvdopmcnl practkes.lD.nd degradJlion, water and air pollution etc. Enviroruncntal chalJmges as
faced by todiy's world is mullifaceted. Even when locaIi2拢d 10 our clime:, the: problem r'".mge from land degmdaLioo, water polluti on, air pollwion, climate: dl8l1&c, waste management, human health, Agri-
QlltlUe, \~hich unfortun:ltc:ly is our main sUlYaside oil. There are !he issues of inform atioo a~'ailubility and ITllUUlgemeJll., public and community awareness to the threals posed by thc:sc: challenges. atlaptalioo and mitigatioo strn1.:giesetc.
Much lIS we: all canvass IIec: plw"IIing. lhere is an inherent danboel" in viewing trc:c planting as the ultimale answer 10 our environmcrval challenges.. Trees can play such roles 115
s路urface cover for our land, erosion Illitigants, carbon sequesters tcmpc:raIW"C regulalOB and improve uanspiration and also provide: shade.. In all ofthcsc ways, trec:5ln an important pica: in keeping a bal-
aoce in our ccologiclll system so yes there is the ncc:d for Ulf caU of keeping and protecting our existing forest reserve, while: striving to grow more forcst but we must be careful nO( to see that efron 115 an
end in itsdfbut should view [t llS a means to an <::1lIi. V.k1Or 0sc3r Ikiriko IS the: Counlry Director of African E",<ironment Action Net .....ork (EANET). Be: "'TOtc: from Abuja
Climate change disasters could be predicted C LIMATE ch;mge disasters. such as the melting of the Gr芦:nJand icc: sheet, dic:back of the Ama:r.on rainforest or collapse of the Atlantic overturni ng circulation, could be: predicted according to University of Enter research. Writing in )he journal Nature Climate Change, Professor Tim Lenton o f lhe University of Exeter shows that the ' tipping poinlS' thatlriggerthesc:disaslers
could be anticipated by looking forchangcs in climale be:hlwiOUJ. Climale ' tipping points' are small changes that trigger a massive shift in climate:: syslems, wi th polenliaJly devllSun ill~ consequences. It is al ready known that climate change caused by human aClivity could push several potential hlWlrds past their 'lipping point' . However, it is olien asswnc:d thai these 'lipping
points' are entirely Wlprc:diclable. Profcssor Lelllon argues that a system of forecasting could be devdoped 10 enable somc forewarning of high-risk tipping points. nle approach he outlines involves analysing observalional data to look for Signs that a climate system is slowing down in ilS response to short-tenn natural variability (which we
experience as the weather). This characleristic behaviour indicates the climate is becoming unstable::, and is II common feature of systems approaching crilical thresholds known as 'bifurcation pomlS' . Professor Tim said: - Many people IlSsumc thllt lipping points which could be: passed as a result o f human-induced cl imatc change are essenlially
unp redictable. Recenl research shows that the situa tion is not as hopeless as il may seem: we ha ve the lools to an ticipate thresholds, ~~ hich mo:ans we could givc socielies valuable lime to adap'-A lthough Ihese findi ngs give us hope, we arc still a long way from developing rigorous early waming systems for these climale ha:r.ards."
Varsity don advocates law on waste management from Johnhnn edy UlOmil, Owenl
uni versity lectuler, Dr.Michllc:l Nwachulc.wu of the Fede ral Univeriity o r Technology Owerri (FUTO) has advoCilh:d fora legidation Iha t wou ld support was te managemen t plans in Nigeria. Dr. Michael Nwachukwu Slated thi s while delivering the 27th public lecture ofFU TO yeslerday titled " Envuonment Deve lopment and SU5lainabilily: The Role of Universi ties in The 2 1st Century" He said that managmg e-waste would A
nOI on ly be com plex, bUI wou ld as we ll challenge both the economy, technology and effectiveness o f service if nOI properly checked by law. The don regrelled thai in many developing countries, waste is managed wilhou t plan , which is equivalent 10 bui lding II house without a plan. This, according to him , is the reaso n why the public sees wasle management as the responsibi lity of governm ent, while government on its part does not see waste manage ment as its priority. He said thai e-waste could poses the
highest environmenta l th reat in developing countries, adding that such problem cou ld lead to lack or li veable environment in Ihe countries. Ue IIdvised Nigerian universities, including polytechnics and Colleges of Education 10 follow Ihe globa l trend in s ustainability s tudies. To ac hieve this, they sho uld educate government fU netionaries, teachers and thc private organisalions in their Cltchment areas on sustainable environment devel opment. On global warming, he described it
as one of the biggest threats confronting mankind in the present cen tury. He said Ihal glubal warming is ra nked the fift h out of 10 [hat pose great globa l challenges, all ri buting il to the observed increase in th o;: <::arl h's ave rage temperature increased by 0.7 Celsius. lie observed that the coal-fired power plants used to produce electricity produce the largest chu nk of grcenhOllse gases, while gaso line and diesel powered vehicles account for the sccond pI lice.