Yeah yeah yeah, why should you care about the environment when you've got better things to worry about, right? Wrong. Really, look around you, what have your people around you been talking about, what have you seen/read in the news. There's deforestation, desertification, erosion, rising sea levels, flooding, erratic seasons, oil spills and gas flares to name a few.
If this was a cartoon, this should totally be a light bulb moment if you weren't already aware of this.
It is estimated that about 35 million people will be affected by climate change in Nigeria. I'm not just pulling stuff out of thin air here. The UK Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology outlines some impacts of climate change some of which include changes in rainfall patterns, increased frequency and severity of floods, droughts, storms and heatwaves, changes in growing seasons, changes in water quality and quantity as well as a rise in sea levels (classic example: Lagos).
This is ultimately going to affect water resources, agriculture and forestry, human health, infrastructure, displacement of settlements and loss of livelihood.
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| Flooding in Nigeria. Image source: BNRCC |
In his 18 July 2011 article published on the Guardian Newspaper, Prof. Chinedum Nwajiuba explained Nigeria's susceptibility to climate change due to her "physical locations and characteristics as well as her socioeconomic situation. Nigeria has a long coastline with several island and coastal communities. Nigeria’s coastal cities are very critical to her economic health and well being of her people. Nigeria also has significant parts along the North very vulnerable to desert-like conditions, arising from human and livestock activities, deforestation for fodder and wood fuel, as well as changing climate conditions. These are worsened by the pressure of survival and the search for livelihood and agricultural purposes. With respect to Nigeria’ socioeconomic circumstances, majority of Nigerians are poor."
While doing research for this article, I stumbled upon the BRNCC's website and watched this wonderful documentary about climate change in the North and South of Nigeria. Pretty lengthy, but take the time to watch it.
Climate Change in Northern Nigeria - In the Red Zone
Climate Change in Southern Nigeria - The Water Runs Deep
Sources:
UN Environment Program
UK Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology
