The National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) has warned that Nigerians who litter or dump refuse indiscriminately in public risk a minimum of six months’ imprisonment or a N20,000 fine.
Hena Emmanuel-Dangari, NESREA’s state coordinator for Kaduna, disclosed this in an interview in Kaduna, noting that even dropping a single item such as a recharge card on the ground attracts the penalty. He said the sanction was contained in the agency’s sanitation and waste control regulation, adding that organisations found culpable of environmental violations could face steeper penalties.
Emmanuel-Dangari, however, said NESREA’s priority remained encouraging voluntary compliance rather than resorting to enforcement and sanctions. He said the agency wants Nigerians to embrace a change in attitude toward the environment, stressing that self-compliance, not the payment of penalties, was the ultimate goal.
He disclosed that NESREA operates under 36 gazetted regulations covering different sectors of the economy, each carrying specific penalties for violations. According to him, the agency’s Kaduna office, which has been active since 2013, has carried out sensitisation campaigns, enforcement drives, and sealed the facilities of defaulters found flouting environmental regulations.
The coordinator said NESREA collaborates with faith-based organisations, markets, civil society groups, and sister agencies to promote proper waste disposal, adding that the agency regularly visits mosques, churches and markets for sensitisation. He said Thursdays have been designated for sensitisation activities across NESREA’s field offices and headquarters nationwide.
Emmanuel-Dangari added that NESREA has also partnered with the Kaduna Environmental Protection Authority (KEPA) on several occasions to sensitise residents on environmental cleanliness and proper waste disposal.
He appealed to Nigerians to cooperate with government efforts and promote environmental awareness among children, youths and adults, saying collective compliance would help build a cleaner, healthier environment nationwide.
(NAN)
