16 THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 28, 2015 THE NATION BUSINESS * The Environment * Mortgage * Apartments * Security * Homes * Real Estate PROPERTY/ENVIRONMENT Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola is set to leave a legacy of sustainable environmental management. One of such is the state’s yearly Climate Change Summit, which ended last week.The event was dedicated to examining achievements in the sector, reviewing challenges and setting agenda, MUYIWA LUCAS reports. LAGOS State has positioned itself as a leader in safe guarding the environment from the effects of climate change. Last week, it concluded its climate change summit, the seventh. This year’s edition was remarkable because it is the last one Governor Babatunde Fashola (SAN) presided over as the state’s chief executive. Fashola started the summit in 2009. The theme of this year’s edition was 7 Years of climate change Governance in Lagos State, Celebrating success stories, reviewing challenges and setting future agenda. According to Fashola, since 2009, the summit has been the principal vehicle for attracting the required attention to environmental challenges. He stressed the need for humanity to reflect on the threat posed by the increasing world population to the sustainable exploitation and use of natural resources. For the governor, the results of the various climate change summits have been very useful to the state government in that it has helped in shaping most of its actions and policies regarding the environment. Some of these include the Eko Atlantic City Project, an adapted measure against climate change-induced sea level rise; improved waste management and transportation; the Lagos, Akute and Alausa Independent Power Projects which are gas fired, leading to the decommissioning of over 400 diesel fuelled electricity generators; the planting of over five million trees; the creation of over 100 parks and gardens across the state; and the establishment of the Lagos State Parks and Garden Agency (LASPARK), among others. Technical sessions The lead paper titled: “Climate change governance: Challenges and opportunities” was delivered by Director of Research Department on International Politics, Aberystwyth University, United Kingdom, Prof. Richard Beardsworth. He emphasised the importance of purposeful leadership to the challenge of climate change. The summit had eight technical plenary, with 26 papers delivered by experts from Nigeria, Scotland, UK, France, United States, South Africa, Canada, Egypt, and Cameroon. The papers covered various aspects of celebrating success stories, reviewing challenges and setting future agenda. The papers included: Post COP 20 Peru Climate Change Conference; implications for Developing Economy; Sharing Innovative Solutions in Climate Change Mitigation in Africa; From Waste to Wealth; Sharing public private partnership Website:- http://www.thenationonlineng.com property@thenationonlineng.net 08062722507 muyiwalucas2002@yahoo.com Lagos: Counting the gains of climate change summits •From left: Fashola; his Commissioner for Environment, Mr. Tunji Bello and Prof. Beardsworth, at the summit. PHOTO: ISAAC JIMOH AYODELE (PPP)-PPP Experience in Establishing and operating material recovery facility in a developing economy; the Lagos State transportation policy and climate change mitigation and opportunities; mass transportation: the panacea for climate change mitigation in a developing economy; public transportation: role in responding to climate change; adopting green business for sustainability engaging corporate lagos; climate change mitigation: the role of financial institutions; and environmental sustainability in the extractive industry: The case for climate mitigation. Other presentations include: building resilience to climate change impacts: batnf and small scale farmers at the frontline; african coastal cities climate change vulnerability and adaptation planning: status and future plans; climate change policy and sustainable development; community energy as a vehicle for sustainable development and combating climate change; offshore energy for sustainable development in lagos state; turning liability into assets: taming the challenges of sea level rise into a vibrant City. The making of Eko Atlantic City; Lagos State Master Plan: Sustaining the Built Environment; among others. Observations The summit observed that climate change is a common global problem in which all states and people are involved as they are all affected, irrespective of the sources of Green House Gas (GHGs). Besides, it also observed that addressing the fundamental challenge of climate change for sustainable development and human survival is borne out of the concern that “nature does not need people, people need nature.” Other observations include that sustainability is a new direction for firms to effectively and profitability show-case their environmental consciousness; that there are many opportunities in the future of sustainable development that is imperative for human existence and survival; that green economy makes a lot of business sense and going green is a profitable business. It also provides new opportunity for global cooperation in the area of promoting energy mix, including renewables, for sustainable socioeconomic and environmental development. Importantly, participants observed that Lagos, as a coastal city, is highly vulnerable to the impact of climate change while rapid and unguided urbanisation, poor institutionalisation of public mass transportation with unsatisfactory commuter/freight demand are responsible for rapidly growing use of private vehicles in Lagos, even as mass transit is a key panacea to the poor transportation system in Lagos State, given the rapid rate of population growth and the desire of dwellers to own their own motor vehicles. The summit did not end without applauding the tree planting initiative of the Fashola administration. Participants restated that tree planting is an effective mitigation measure against the impact of climate change. Urban reforestation, in particular, is a laudable approach to improving carbon sequestration and mitigating climate changeinduced urban heat island. Also, it was observed that climate proofing agriculture and its resilience to variations in climate is critical for sustainable food security in the state. More importantly, the Eko Atlantic City Project was applauded as potentially an effective adaptive response to mitigate the impact of climate change on the coastal city of Lagos, and the use of only private sector resources for the execution of the Project is an innovative way to ensure its sustainability; just as an effective town planning is critical to sustainable urban development and making cities climate resilient. The absence of a legally binding policy and action plan on climate change at the state level, participants further noted, is of concern. Recommendations Twenty-five recommendations were made at the end of the event. These include: that government should continue to invest in climate change to promote environmental sustainability and assured future for human existence in the state; that Lagos as mega city must commit to addressing greenhouse gas emissions reduction; including introducing Controlled Parking Zones to deter the use of private vehicles and establishment of carbon registry to monitoring GHG emission levels, among others; that Lagos State should further enlarge its mass transit programme to transit it into an ‘The Eko Atlantic City Project was applauded as potentially an effective adaptive response to mitigate the impact of climate change on the coastal city of Lagos, and the use of only private sector resources for the execution of the project is an innovative way to ensure its sustainability’ integrated, coordinated and functional public mass transport system, complimentary road furniture’s and a comprehensive urban transport policy driven by empirical research study; that urban development should be controlled through appropriate measures that will reduce dependency on motorised vehicles and reduce the increasing need for urban infrastructure; that Lagos State should continue to showcase the benefits of its tree planting initiative, as a climate change mitigation and adaptation measures to other parts of the country; that the State should look into the feasibility of enriching its remaining forest areas in the context of REED+ to create financial value for carbon stored in forest, address the drivers of deforestation, enhance its carbon sequestration for climate change mitigation, and even provide additional means of livelihoods for the concerned communities; that the State should develop a climate change information management system in which all research outputs are catalogued and widely disseminated on a regular basis; that technology should be put in place to reduce GHG emissions from waste in the State; that youths should be encouraged and involved in the development of climate change mitigation technology; that the State should pursue a strategic alignment with the private corporate organisations in the State in its fight against climate change and promote research, development, demonstration and deployment (RDD&D), particularly in the development of technological response to the challenge. Other recommendations include that the Lagos State Green Fund (inspired by the Lekki Free Trade Zone) should be created to leverage funding from all sources – state, federal, bilateral and multilateral financial institutions - to promote green employment generation, investment, and innovation; that the State should establish a Lagos Green Eco-Innovation Forum that will be mandated to spearhead efforts to promote and intensify Nigeria’s (and African) efforts to meet climate change targets and goals through entrepreneurship and philanthropy; government should continue to support the African Coastal Cities Climate Change Vulnerability and Adaptation Planning Project towards making Lagos more resilient; Relevant stakeholders should be involved on a continuous basis in the execution of the Eko Atlantic City Project to ensure sustainability, and the Lagos State should ensure continuity in the implementation of the model city plan within the existing legal framework to further climate proof Lagos, while putting in place a positive, innovative, policy environment and strengthen existing regulatory framework, including tax incentives and governance mechanisms which will promote public and private investment in climate change mitigation projects in Lagos state Participants at the summit also recommended that the state government should explore the possibilities of developing a framework for the construction of energy efficient houses for both low and middle income earning residents of the State, urging the government to look into the feasibility of an Energy-Poverty Alleviation Fund to help provide modern energy services to the poor and the needy in the state.
THE NATION TUESDAY, APRIL 28, 2015 17
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