FG Partners NOSDRA On Gas Flare, Oil Spillage

 

The Federal Government said it has engaged the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) in the tracking of gas flare as well as surveillance and ensuring compliance with all existing environmental legislation.

The minister of environment, Dr Mohammad Mahmood, added that the development will also help the detection of oil spills in the Petroleum Sector.

Dr Mahmood during a press conference in Osogbo held after the opening celebration of the 2021 World Environment Day themed “Ecosystem Restoration-resetting Our Relation With Nature” which was attended by Governor Gboyega Oyetola, held in Osogbo, the state capital of Osun.

Earlier, the minister while speaking at the opening ceremony stressed that the federal government is concern with the 3.7 – 4.0% alarming rate of deforestation which has made the ministry engage locally and internationally, in the formulation of enabling policies and legislation aimed to bring the situation under control.

With the support from the Multilateral Fund of the Montreal Protocol, the Ministry has a programme for promotion and transition to the use of hydrocarbons as an alternative to Ozone layer depleting refrigerants, Dr Mahmood noted.

“Already, the Ministry, with the support from the Multilateral Fund of the Montreal Protocol, has an indigenous technology pilot plant in Ogun State for the production of high-grade hydrocarbon refrigerants, principally Propane and Isobutane, which are liquefied petroleum gases, for use as refrigerants in the refrigeration and air conditioning sector.

“Prioritize and Enforce the Extended Producer Responsibility Framework; the Ministry, through the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA), is implementing the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) programme which has commenced in three sectors of Electrical Electronics, Food and Beverages and Battery Waste Streams,” Mahmood said.

Earlier in his statement during the opening ceremony, Governor Oyetola of Osun State called on residents of the state and Nigerians to take ownership of their environments.

He urged citizens to wake up to the realities of the implications of their actions in relation to their interaction with the environment.

On the part of the government, Governor Oyetola disclosed that his administration had commenced proactive steps aimed at addressing unlawful actions of ignorant citizens of the State and their collaborators in order to save the ecosystem and the environment.