Since 1999, elis africa program has worked to strengthen environmental law, policy, and management in africa. Other areas, such as environmental impact assessment, may not fit neatly into. There is need for government to enact and implement necessary environmental laws to control the issues of environmental pollution and this can be done by putting necessary environmental pollution enforcement structures in place to curb the spate of environmental pollution in nigeria. The lagos state environmental protection agency lasepa is the environmental regulator for lagos state of nigeria. Provisions of some environmental laws and regulations in nigeria environmental laws are worthless except they are effectively enforced. It concluded by proffering regulatory techniques and suggests amendments to most of the environmental laws to enable regulatory agencies function effectively. Practices of multinational oil companies in niger delta, nigeria. In nigeria, environmental master plan of government is a most.
Critically, this book not only examines the fluidity of oil pollutions laws but also how effective or ineffective enforcement can be when viewed through the lens of environmental justice. The mandate was fulfilled in 1999 by the publication of fepas national guidelines and standards for environmental pollution control duly captioned national interim guidelines and standards for industrial effluents. It has the largest acreage in the country from which it produces some 39 per cent of the nations oil. Legislation serves as an effective instrument for environmental protection, planning, pollution, prevention and control. Gas flaring practices started since the first discovery of oil in the niger delta region of nigeria, and this practice has continued without seizure. West africas environmental policy spells out the objectives, resources and actions meant to improve on environmental and natural resource management in west africa in a bid to guarantee a healthy environment for the population. Eli also provided copies of other framework environmental laws from africa and around the world to assist the association and the government of liberia in developing an effective framework environmental law. Shell petroleum development company spdc is the pioneer and leader of the petroleum industry in nigeria. Consequently, it can safely be inferred that the environmental policies and strategies in nigeria oil and gas industry. Partnering with african ngos and governments, eli helps draft and advance pragmatic and effective environmental laws and policies, analyzes and identifies options to improve the implementation of existing environmental law, and builds the capacity of local institutions and citizens. The history of environmental policy and pollution of water.
A related but distinct set of regulatory regimes, now strongly influenced by environmental legal principles, focus on the management of specific natural resources, such as forests, minerals, or fisheries. Environmental policies are set up by the various and relevant organs of the government to compel nigerians to look after their environments. The environmental policies of spdc and the state are below expectations given the huge earnings from oil. Pdf the environment in nigeria faces the risk of degradation due to human activities and. Truth is environmental safety is everyones responsibility. However, as a result of incessant exploitation of these natural resources to meet. Impact of environmental laws and regulations on nigerian environment. The main aim of this research is to ascertain the factor affecting environmental laws especially the gas flaring policies in nigeria. The agency was established by nesrea establishment act, 2007, thus repealing the federal environmental protection agency act cap f10 lfn 2004. Solution to these problems require going beyond the strategies and objectives of fepa. Pursuant to section 20 of the constitution, the state is empowered to protect and improve the environment and safeguard the water, air and land, forest and wildlife of nigeria.
The challenges of environmental problems in nigeria. Apart from the loss of petroleumderived revenue to corruption and. The nesrea act empowers the agency to be responsible for enforcing all environmental laws, guidelines, policies, standards and regulations in nigeria, as well as enforcing compliance with provisions of international agreements, protocols, conventions and treaties on. Governing body 1 the governing body of the agency is a board consisting of a one person knowledgeable in environmental matters as chairman, b the executive director, c one representative of the council for scientific and industrial research, not below the rank of principal research officer. However, the functions of environmental laws should be well understood for effective and efficient enforcement. Lagos state environmental protection agency lasepa.
The national environmental standards and regulations enforcement agency nesrea is a parastatal of the federal ministry of environment. Training resource manual case studies from developing countries, nigeria. Federal environmental protection agency fepa was established to control the nigerian environment, its resources exploitation and management. Professor zhou ke believes that the numerous number of environmental laws did not mean good quality equally.
Environmental policy is the commitment of an organization or government to the laws, regulations, and other policy mechanisms concerning environmental issues. Environmental health laws and policies are created to regulate and safeguard our environment. Oil and gas environmental protection laws in nigeria. In this regard, the federal government of nigeria has promulgated various laws and regulations to safeguard the nigerian environment.
Environmental regulation and pollution control in relation. This article lists the most important national environmental laws by continent and country. Environmental protection law 41994 amended by law 92009 egypt concerning the protection of nile river and water channels. Environmental protection agency act, 1994 act 490 4. However, the laws help compel people to be more responsible towards the environment where they live or. Pdf impact of environmental laws and regulations on nigerian. The federal ministry of environment has identified about 80 desk officers for infoterra services in nigeria to facilitate public access to environmental information. Environmental protection in nigeria ggu law digital commons. Developmental stages of environmental lawsregulatory frameworks and policies strategies in nigeria the development and evolution of environmental lawsregulatory frame works and by extension policies strate gies in nigeria with reference to the oil and gas industry can be divided into three major generations. This article examines the role of past and recent government environmental control policies and programs in nigeria. This book explores the relationship between oil pollution laws and environmental justice by comparing and contrasting the united states and nigeria. The paper argues that whilst nigeria has extremely valuable environmental laws, the central problem lies in the enforcement of these laws and guidelines. The activities of spdc in the niger delta had left a balance sheet of ecological disaster. The regulations that govern various human activities on the environment are vested on many agencies under the ministry agabi 3.
The second aim is to explore the interaction of various actors involved in gas flaring laws in nigeria. Despite this value, an economic perspective is by no means a perfect substitute for other legitimate perspectives on environmental law and policy, whether from the natural sciences, from ethics, or from other disciplines. Environment law in nigeria energy and natural resources. The colonial economic development policies and plans contain. In nigeria, environmental laws have been formulated and are being implemented to. Environmental policy and its enforcement in nigeria. Environmental law is a collective term encompassing aspects of the law that provide protection to the environment. Introduction nigeria is committed to a national environmental policy that will ensure sustainable development based on proper management of the environment. Gas flaring has been associated with many socioeconomic, political and health implication in. This article appraises the postkoko environmental protection laws in nigeria, with a view to assessing environmental protection mechanisms in the country. The impotency of the environmental policy to protect the environment in nigeria is a reflection of the inability of the state to effectively implement environmental policies. This requires that a number of complementary policies, strategies and. It identified various environmental challenges confronting nigeria and justification. According to obi ogbalu in his environmental regulation in nigeria, xiv real environmental legislation in nigeria was a product of national emergency.
Rethinking environmental law enforcement in nigeria. In 20032004, tanzania developed a new framework law governing environmental protection. These issues generally include air and water pollution, waste management, ecosystem management, maintenance of biodiversity, the management of natural resources, wildlife and endangered species. The paper calls for a goalsetting regime, based upon collaboration reinforced by the enforcement of the approved plans of the industry itself, which would greatly enhance the prospect of. Wonah department of political and administrative studies, faculty of social sciences, university of port harcourt. This demands positive and realistic planning that balances human needs against the carrying capacity of the environment.
Gaseous emissions and hazardous waste management in nigeria. General shall, subject to the policies laid down by the agency, develop programmes to carry out the purposes and provisions of this act and, without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, shall, in particular. The capacity of decision makers, policy makers, planners, implementers and researchers should. Prior to this incident, environmental legislation was covered under unrelated laws on distinct.
The national policy on occupational safety and health is governments approach for achieving, inter alia, a national development philosophy of building a united, selfreliant and egalitarian economy through minimizing so far as is reasonably practicable, the causes and effects of hazards inherent in the working environment. Egyptian law 102 of 1983, for nature protectorates. The vision of the agency is to ensure a cleaner and healthier. Examining environmental policies and laws in nigeria. Environmental law is a new term in tanzania, although some of the many concepts in environmental law have existed since the birth of the nation and earlier. The various policies and strategies of environmental policies and strategies in nigeria oil and gas industry have therefore evolved almost at the same pace with the evolution of the nigerian oil and gas industry. The clean energy bill this seeks to create a legislative framework to promote the rapid expansion of environmental engineering and improve its efficiency in the country. Similarly, the strategic environmental assessment seathe application of environmental impact assessment eia principles to policies, plans and programmesis yet to receive mandatory status in nigeria nwafor, 2006. It ensures that all local, states and federal agencies as well companies that operate in nigeria, comply with all extant regulations. Nigeria is replete with policy, but lacks in their implementation. But field observation revealed that environmental degradation is growing at a rate worse than the pre fepa period. He explained further, the development of environmental regulation was greatly aided in the late 1980s by the kook incident that occurred in the country.
Government policy and environmental protection in the developing. Enforcing environmental regulations in nigeria the. The inability of the nigerian state to effectively implement environmental policies is in turn a reflection of the character of the state. The paper examines the impact of the nature and character of the nigerian state and its environmental policy on the achievement of sustainable development in nigeria. Pdf water resources use, abuse and regulation in nigeria. Examining environmental policies and laws in nigeria aliyu ibrahim kankara dept. The constitution of the federal republic of nigeria 1999 national environmental standards and regulations enforcement agency act environmental impact assessment act.
The goal of the national policy on the environment is to achieve sustainable development in nigeria, and, in particular to. Environmental policies and strategies in nigeria oil and. The basis of environmental policy in nigeria is contained in the 1999 constitution of the federal republic of nigeria. Nigeria is an active member of the unepinfoterra global environmental information exchange network with national focal points in 177 countries. The environmental guidelines and standards for the petroleum industry in nigeria also impose fines for various environmental infractions and the.