Nigeria is the most populated country in Africa, with a population of ~200 million that is expected to double by 2050. Currently, the country’s energy for cooking, electrification, industries, and transportation needs are primarily met by hydrocarbon and wood fuels. As of 2015, Nigeria was named the world’s 17th largest emitter of greenhouse gases and the second only after South Africa in Africa.
The impact of climate change on Nigeria is enormous. Drastic temperature increases, leading to extreme heat, affect the millions without access to electricity and air conditioning. Climate change has also impacted ocean levels and rainfall pattern, leading to flooding and drought in various parts of the country.
The discourse centred on the factors behind the impact of climate change on the country, its effects on humans, and the possibility of renewable energy to combat climate change.
In the Niger Delta region of the country, a series of oil exploration is carried out in the region due to oil in the soil. However, the magnitude of oil exploration is not regulated; there have been occasions of oil spillage resulting from faulty pipelines, oil theft, and poor drilling operations e.t.c.
Another factor responsible for climate change is gas flaring which occurs in the open air, thereby releasing harmful gases into the atmosphere, increasing the levels of CO2, and releasing nitrous and sulphurous oxides in the air. Deforestation, flooding, and construction of buildings around coastline areas are other additional factors that have contributed to climate change.
The effects of these activities on humans are as follows:
- Oil spillage affects the communities around it by rendering the agricultural produce useless, polluting water bodies, which affects the community members’ resources. Fish and other aquatic organisms have been discovered to have oil particulates and can not be consumed.
- The effects of gas flaring resulting in the release of CO2 into the atmosphere causes global warming, which we currently experience in the form of a heatwave, rising sea levels, causing floods (learn more).
- Trees act as a natural absorber of CO2 and, in turn, releases O2 into the environment.
- Deforestation activities reduce the amount of CO2 that ought to have been absorbed, thereby leaving it in the environment and increasing greenhouse gases.
On the possibility of renewable energy to combat climate change, the panellists raised some suggestions. They included modern technology to create dams in areas affected by floods to trap the water and utilise it in hydropower generation to electrify communities around the area.
Overall, we have been enlightened about our activities’ effects on the environment. There’s still a lot more to come during the second part of this discussion coming up next month.
Stay tuned.