Environment
Fighting Desertification Via Date Palm Cultivation
Dr Newton Jibunoh, the founder of Fight Against Desert Encroachment (FADE), once said that by 2015, some of the northern parts of Nigeria would become a desert, judging by the rate of desert encroachment in the country.
Several environmentalists have a similar viewpoint, stressing that at the current rate of desertification, a large percentage of arable lands in the northern parts of Nigeria would become arid and uncultivable, thereby threatening the country’s food security.
They emphasise that although the current tree planting campaign across the country is a panacea to the emerging environmental menace, the inclusion of date palm trees in the exercise will definitely produce more useful results.
Corroborating such claims, agricultural experts say that since date palm trees naturally thrive in the desert environment, they could effectively be used to curb desertification in the country, while serving as cash crop.
The agriculturists also insist that it is economically viable to plant trees which boost economic potential of the region, adding that the area’s farmers could earn some income from such tree-planting ventures.
Sharing similar sentiments, Mr Chukwuemeka Eke, a researcher in Nigeria Institute for Oil Palm Research (NIFOR), said that date palm cultivation was a potent way to rein in desertification in desert-prone areas.
“The United Arab Emirates (Dubai) situation could be used to illustrate the benefits of date palm. In the Emirates, date palm cultivation was carried out with the aid of biotechnology to produce plantations that were used to eliminate desertification in the country.
“They have been able to transform almost all their desert into a very fruitful place; their strategy is to plant cultured date palm trees and initiate irrigation measures.
“If the Federal Government steps in and does the same thing, you would be surprised at the level of transformation that would come to our desert areas or regions facing desert encroachment.
“The support of government in this form of project is imperative because it involves not just planting crops in the desert land but it also entails some irrigation facilities,’’ he said.
Eke noted that date palm as a plant had a life span of more than 30 to 40 years with sustained reproduction, adding that date palm, which was mostly cultivated for its edible fruit, could grow up to between 70 and 75 feet in height, singly or in a clump.
He stressed that with biotechnology applications, date palm trees could be multiplied in its millions via the tissue culture; a collection of techniques used to maintain and grow plant cells.
“Cultivating this excellent crop is profitable and it will remove a lot of families from poverty and improve the livelihood of small-scale farmers in Nigeria.
“The crop will provide food and raw materials for domestic use, such as livestock supplements.
“It also has a lot of industrial potential for production of syrups, jam, ice cream, baby foods, alcoholic beverages and soft drinks,’’ he added.
Eke argued that date palm plantations could be a veritable source of livelihood for many people living in remote areas, while providing jobs for a considerable number of people in the rural areas.
He stressed that date palm cultivation was now less demanding, as NIFOR had be able to identify some date palm species which could mature within two years, as against the normal seven to 15 years.
He, nonetheless, conceded that the country’s date palm industry was facing some challenges in terms of low yield and packaging.
As part of efforts to address these challenges, the researcher said that NIFOR had been striving to develop packaging facilities to facilitate the commercialisation of locally produced date palm fruits.
Eke said that the date palm tree could tolerate relatively harsh climatic and soil conditions under which no other crop could give reasonable returns.
“Date palm tree is an irreplaceable tree in irrigable desert lands and it plays a vital role in efforts to stop desertification,’’ he added.
In the same vein, the National Centre for Genetic Resources and Biotechnology said in a report that its research had revealed that date palm cultivation would be a panacea to desertification because of the plant’s ability to adapt to desert environment.
It also said that the research found that date palm fruits had high nutritive and commercial value, while date palm trees played important roles in the ecology of various desert and semi-desert environments.
Consequently, Mr Leonard Ihase, a researcher, called on Federal Government to include date palm cultivation in its Agricultural Transformation Agenda so as to improve the livelihood of small-scale farmers and protect desert-prone areas.
He said that unlike the local date palm which would take many years to mature, the improved seedlings would start fruiting after two years, noting that one hectare of the seedlings could yield up to 10.8 million tonnes of fruits annually.
On the economics of date palm cultivation in the country, Ihase explained that planting the crop would also reduce the importation of date palm fruits from Dubai.
All in all, agronomists underscore the wisdom in promoting date palm cultivation in desert-prone areas across the country to curb the growing menace of desertification.
They also urge all the stakeholders in agriculture sector to give priority attention to date palm cultivation via biotechnology applications to curb desertification.
Obanda writes for News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)
Kate Obande
Some residents of Port Harcourt and its environs have reacted to the impending flooding in parts of the country, including Rivers state.
It would be recalled that the federal government last week predicted flooding in some states in the country, including Rivers State.
A cross session of residents who spoke to The Tide on the issue said time has come for residents to be careful about the way they managed their waste, especially at this time of the year.
According to them, people must avoid blocking water channels as well as indiscriminate dumping of waste into water channels.
Speaking with The Tide, an Environmentalist, Elder Blessing Jackson Tiko, called for caution by residents of Port Harcourt and its environs
Tiko who was a former deputy operational officer Phalga Environmental Sanitation Taskforce, said people must be conscious of the way and manner that they manage their waste.
“We know that we have the rain and if you watch it is coming especially this month of July,it would rain and rain and rain
“We have to be very conscious of how we manage our environmental system, the way we throw our waste and how we evacuate it so that every where will be open for water to move freely
“Water doesn’t want blockage, water wants free flow, ’he said
Tiko urged state governments to liaise with the federal government and development agencies to dredge and open up river channels to enable Water move freely.
He particularly called on the Niger Delta Basine Development Authority and the Niger Delta Development Commission to liaise with state governments in the quest to end flooding in the states.
Also speaking, Mrs. Alice. A. Alabo a trader at Mile 3 Port Harcourt, urged the state government to do something on the constant flooding at the Abuja bypass in Mile 3 Diobu, Port Harcourt,
She said the bypass is always flooded at every little rainfalls stressing that something must be done about it.
Alabo also told The Tide Correspondents that the Abuja bypass has no receptacles and called on the management of the Rivers State Waste Management Agency to provide receptacles for the people, to ensure proper waste disposal in the area.
“The government should provide us with receptacles for us to properly place our waste which is causing the flooding in the area.
A shop owner Dickey, Livia Marko lemanted the incessant flooding along the Abuja bypass, adding that the situation is affecting their businesses.
“We have been begging the Rivers State Government and the local government to come to our aid.
“The Ego Line Progressive Union contributes N10,000 every year to make sure that we evacuate the drainage.
“We called the Hausa boys to come and clean from the beginning to the end of the tunnel which leads to the Interwoba
“So immediately after each rainfall within 10 minutes it will dry otherwise we cannot stay in our shop.
“I am begging the government to come to our rescue, even if they want to open the gutter or canal. It will help in preventing the flooding or they should clean the gutters starting from Ikwerre Road to the Interwoba axis”, he said
On his part,Mr. Ajaka Olawa, lamented that the flooding in Timber area by Abuja bypass area is so terrible that no businesses can easily be carried on in the area.
He blamed it on the continuous blockage of drainages
. “I can’t remember the last time the government came to clean the drainage, so when it rains we find it difficult to stay here.
“Some of our shops are wet because of the flooding. And if the rain falls heavily, we pack our goods. If not. they get damaged, and I am expecting this message to reach the government for them to do something about it”
“The people, the government gives the job are not being followed up, that’s why the road is still looking bad,
“The government is trying, but they should put more effort to make sure that the jobs are being carried out.
Also, Mr. Chukuma said, during the flooding along Abuja bypass by Timber, no activities take place.
He said that if rain falls, either little or heavy, none can use the road because the road will be inundated by water. Sometimes it takes two to three days for the water to dry.
According to him, eight years ago, the former governor was here to see things for himself, but nothing happened till he left office.
By: Victoria Gilbert / Ossia Victory
Following the rising impact of toxic waste in the Niger Delta communities in Nigeria, an Ecological Think Tank, Health of Mother Earth Foundation, HOMEF, has urged oil-producing communities in the region to monitor their environment and report incidents of pollution or other environmental hazards in real time to appropriate authorities.
The Project Manager, Communities and Culture, HOMEF, Cadmus Atake gave the advice last Friday during a Community Environmental Monitoring Training for the people of Nembe, Town-Brass in Bayelsa and Eastern Obolo, Akwa Ibom States respectively which was held in Eket Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State.
Atake said though the extractive activities of oil companies have impacted negatively on the communities, the people still have a role to play in protecting the environment by not throwing plastics in the water bodies or engaging in activities inimical to the environment.
He said, “The purpose is to train the people on how they can monitor their environment that has been impacted by extractive activities, for them to observe the changes that occur in their environment and things they see when they go out to fish.”
Atake also harped on the need for documentation and reporting of the identified environmental challenges or pollution, saying that monitoring without reporting would be an effort in futility even as he tasked them with the accuracy, authenticity and originality of data without any mutilation.
He encouraged people to use mobile phones to take real-time photos and videos without editing the images in the case of pollution or oil spills.
His words, “Reporting is an essential aspect of any monitoring activity. It affords the opportunities to track the activity and its impacts. It makes an activity visible and draws attention to it. Also, it helps to identify associated risks and to know the required controls and learning outcomes needed to prevent the reoccurrence of failures of an activity. No monitoring exercise is complete without a report of observations and a point of action.
“You must identify what caused the pollution, state the name of the community and landmark and if possible, use GPS, time and date the pollution was observed.”
One of the participants, OmusuoDieworio from Bayelsa State noted that apart from the activities of the multinationals, the people have contributed to the disappearance of fishes in the rivers by dumping refuse and plastic wastes inside the river which posed a great threat to fishes even as he urged community leaders to promulgate laws prohibiting that and the youth leaders to ensure the enforcement.
“Our people should be sensitized on the hazards of toxic waste. We should put laws that are binding on us. Our fishermen should discipline themselves enough after drinking sachet water eating should not drop the waterproof inside the water. They should also be discouraged from using dynamite and other chemicals for fishing as all these are harmful to both the aquatic animals and human beings that will consume it.” He said.
Speaking on the Petroleum Industry Act, PIA, UmoIsua-Ikoh of the Peace Pact Development Foundation, said the provision in the PIA where the community should forfeit its 3% development fund in case of pipeline vandalism criminalizes the community and should be expunged noting that no community will agree to vandalize pipeline but an individual or a criminal.
He said they should go after anyone who vandalises pipelines and not make the entire community bear the brunt of one person.
On his part, Stephen Oduware, the Program Manager at Fossil Politics, called on the communities to network with CSOs, CBOs, doctors, lawyers, media especially those from their communities and other community members who have the community at heart to advocate at all fronts.
“The community people should partner with CSOs, CBOs so that they will be able to advocate from all fronts from the health implication of this pollution from the legal and human right violations as a result of this pollution, land grabbing and then they will be able to get well-researched works from the academics, we believe that with this network they will be able to push for the justice they needed.” He said.
The Delta State Govern-
ment says it is working hard to tackle the issue of climate change in the state.
Special Adviser to the state Governor on Sustainable Development Goals) (SDGs, Lady Diana Eyo _Enoette, said this in an interview with newsmen during the launching of Green City Project in Port Harcourt.
She said the government was doing this by raising awareness on the impact of climate change in the State and also control the indiscriminate dumping of waste across the State.
Eye-Emoette said government has also setup scouts across the State to embark on tree planting campaign in all nooks and crannies of Delta State.
She said time has come for governments across the Niger Delta region to create more awareness on climate change, adding that continuous human activities in the region have made it vulnerable to climate change
Diana described her government as a leading voice on climate change as far as the Niger Delta region is concerned and stressed the need for other governments in the region to follow suit.
She said Green City’s initiatives have become a potent weapon in fighting climate change, stressing that the initiative is coming at the appropriate time.
The special advise said governments across the country should key into the green city’s projects inorder to reduce carbon emissions into the atmosphere.
Meanwhile, a university teacher, Professor Magnus Onuoha, has called for conscious efforts by governments across Africa to check carbon emissions.
The university teacher also described the green city’s initiatives as a safe avenue for emerging cities in Africa.
Prof Onuoha, who spoke via videophone described the project as innovative, adding that climate change is real and no longer fallacies.
According to him “it is glaringly telling on our faces and the possibility of it going away is not there”.
He said.
By: John Bibor