Nigeria’s Lagos State, which incorporates the nation’s sprawling financial capital of greater than 20 million individuals, has introduced a ban on styrofoam and single-use plastics to curb air pollution.
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The state authorities stated in an announcement on Sunday the ban would take impact instantly however environmental consultants stated implementing and implementing it might be sophisticated.
Many avenue distributors and markets in Lagos use styrofoam containers to serve and ship meals or produce and the plastic and different containers litter roads and block drains within the megapolis.
“Following the menace which single-use plastics particularly non-biodegradable Styrofoam are inflicting on the setting, the Lagos State authorities… is hereby saying a ban on the utilization and distribution of Styrofoam and different single-use plastics,” the Lagos setting comissioner stated on X.
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Some Nigerians welcomed the initiative, however others questioned its implementation and what the choice can be for merchants and producers.
Folawemi Umunna, co-founder of Local weather and Ecological Safety Initiative, stated the transfer was constructive if the programme was correctly carried out.
“That is great information for the setting on completely different ranges and if that is successfully executed, able to lowering a considerable quantity of CO2 emissions in tonnes within the Lagos State perimeter,” she stated.
“That is beside the social menace of blocking drainages and negatively affecting marine biodiversity.”
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Sitting between lagoons and the Atlantic Ocean, Lagos faces a mixture of climate-related issues, with many elements already densely populated and in danger from flooding.
Different African international locations reminiscent of Kenya and Uganda have tried bans on plastic baggage.
The United Nations Surroundings Programme (UNEP) estimates the equal of two,000 rubbish vehicles of plastic is dumped into the seas, rivers and lakes every single day.
Every year round 19-23 million tonnes of plastic waste leaks into the world’s water ecosystems. UNEP says.
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By Garrin Lambley © Agence France-Presse
