Environmentalists oppose Lagos waste-to-energy plant

A non-governmental organisation, Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives Nigeria, has kicked against the planned establishment of waste to the energy plant by the Lagos State Government.

Addressing journalists on Tuesday in Lagos, the Clean Energy Campaigner for GAIA Nigeria, Mr Weyinmi Okotie, said that the proposal by the state government was a distraction from proper energy disposal.

Recall that the Lagos State Government recently hinted at plans to build waste-to-energy plants in Olusosun, Epe, and Badagry dumpsites in the state.

The state’s Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Mr Tokunbo Wahab, revealed this at the waste-to-energy summit, themed “Driving environmental sustainability,” held in Lagos recently.

Okotie stated that the move would affect the health and environment of those communities.

“Without protecting the country through the community, we might not be able to enjoy the natural resources the country is blessed with,” Okotie said.

He urged all concerned citizens, environmental organisations, and stakeholders to join in the fight for a cleaner and healthier Lagos.

An Executive Director at Sustainable Research and Action for Environmental Development, Nigeria, Dr Leslie Adogame, urged the state not to adopt what he described as outdated technology.

“The state should not adopt outdated technologies that are being phased out in the global north,” he counselled.

According to Adogame, implementing a waste-to-energy incinerator in Lagos contradicts the city’s aspiration to be a leader in sustainability and innovation, especially with its growing interest and recognition in climate change advocacy.

“If Lagos adopts this flawed approach, it sets a dangerous precedent for the rest of Nigeria and Africa,” he added.

The co-founder of the Centre for Earth Work, Mr Benson Dotun-Fasanya, added that waste incineration was the most expensive and the least efficient way to generate energy.

“Due to the low calorific value of waste, waste-to-energy plants convert less than 25 per cent of material energy in the garbage into marketed electricity, even lower than other polluting systems: 35 per cent for coal and 45 per cent for natural gas systems,” he concluded.

Meanwhile, an attempt to get a reaction from the Lagos State Government was not fruitful, as the state’s Commissioner for Information, Mr Gbenga Omotosho, did not pick up our correspondent’s calls to his mobile phone nor did he reply to an SMS sent to him at the time of filling this report.

The GAIA is a worldwide network of over 1,000 organisations fighting for a future free from waste pollution.