9th June, 2011
Governor Rauf Aregbesola of Osun State has declared 90 days emergency on the state of environment within which all stakeholders are expected to achieve the highest standard of sanitation.
He made the declaration on Wednesday in Osogbo in his address on the occasion of the World Environment Day.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the event was organised by the National
Environmental Sanitation Regulation Standards Agency (NESREA) and the state Ministry for Environment and Sanitation.
Aregbesola said that during the emergency period, government would arouse the consciousness of the people, sensitise and mobilise them to take total control of their environment.
“To make it as painless as possible, all stakeholders, including the market women, spiritualists, drivers, artisans, traders and butchers will be properly sensitised.
“We will let them know that we impact on the environment we live everyday, and therefore we should learn how to take care of it,” he said.
The governor said the emergency period would take a 100 percent tolerance on day one and 80 percent on day two, until it reached zero tolerance.
He said it was not possible to get a zero tolerance in one day, noting that it would take a gradual process to make the people environment-friendly and virtuous.
The governor warned against illegal felling of trees, unauthorised farming at Government Reservation Areas (GRA) and all forms of encroachment.
He also directed pupils and students from both the public and private schools to embark on the planting and nurturing of a tree each, during their entire stay in school.
Aregbesola said this was the only practical way to comply with the principle of the World
Environment Day theme: “Forest, Nature At Our Service” to conserve forest resources.
The NESREA Zonal Director had earlier assured the governor of the readiness of the agency to partner with the state in ensuring a successful execution of the environmental sanitation project.