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Alagoa Morris

Environmentalist says pollution threat to fishing, ecosystem

Alagoa Morris

An Environmentalist, Morris Alagoa, the Project Director, Ondewari Health, Education and Environmental Project (OHEEP), says pollution is a threat to fishermen, the environment and the ecosystem.

He stated this during a one-day training organised by the Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF), with the theme: “Coastal Environmental Monitoring, Reporting and Advocacy.”

Fishing and farming are the dominant, age-long occupation of Bayelsa people.

He said: “Environmental Education is the aspect of education that deals with the environment and it’s pollution.

“The marine ecosystem hosts about 80% of the world’s biodiversity and also supports other life forms on land.

“We need clean and healthy creeks, rivers, lakes and oceans to support our own health and survival and we cannot afford corporate gamble with and privatisation of our oceans through exploration/exploitation and pollution.

“Importance of the marine ecosystems and freshwater ecosystem is that fishing is a source of livelihood, and a critical source of animal protein for people.

“The informal economy provides about 50-60% employment in many African countries. The informal sector contributes 60% to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Nigeria,” he said.

Alagoa, said the fisheries sector employs up to 12 million people in Africa (58% in fishing and 42% in processing). The fisheries sector is clearly a major informal subsector that contributes to the provision of protein as well as supporting the livelihood of millions of Africans.

He said the negative impact of pollution being experienced in the environment has led to increased health risks, lower life expectancy and reduced levels of fecundity of land and marine ecosystems.

The Environmentalist lamented that pollution degrades the environment and threatens aquatic ecosystem, health and other means of livelihood.

In his remarks, Mr Prince Ebi, a fisheries expert, said Bayelsa has comparative advantages in deep sea fishing, using speed boats in their area among others.

He said fish farming also known as aquaculture also has some challenges, which are oil spill, sea pirates and gas explosion.

Ebi explained that deep sea fishing is capital intensive, that the speed boat they use, consume a lot of fuel in addition to nets and other fishing gear.

He said that the aquaculture people enjoy more than the deep sea fishers as government through the ministry of Agriculture gives loans to them but never assists the deep sea fishers.

Mr Ebieberi Wailers, a coastline marine expert, said that the people around the coastline are finding things difficult because of coastline erosion that has sacked many households in the area.

He said that the fish in their coastlines have started dying again and no one could state the main cause of deaths. He said the people’s lives are being threatened also.

Wailers urged people to stop throwing plastics into the sea, as that can equally be harmful to aquatic life.

He called on the Bayelsa Government to also create an enabling environment for fishers as they are passing through difficulties, even in the area of global warming.

 

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