By CHARLES IWUOHA

The Enugu State Government has urged residents to stop indiscriminate bush burning and other harmful environmental practices in order to bestow a sustainable environment to up-coming generations.

The Chief Fire Officer of the state, Chief Okwudili Ohaa, gave the advice while speaking with newsmen in Enugu on Sunday.

Ohaa spoke on the sidelines of the World Environment Day held every June 5, globally to create awareness on environmental issues and steps to take to enshrine best environmental practices.

He lamented the monumental yearly losses encountered by individuals, communities and even the government owing to indiscriminate bush burning, especially during harmattan season and early farming periods.

“One of the greatest ways our people can assist the government is to stop all forms of bush burning.

“Bush burning degrades the land and leaves it open to the negative scourge of excessive heat necessitated by the depletion of the ozone layer.

“At times, activities of bush burning escalate to become wildfire threatening an entire village or community, thus creating emergency response for the state’s fire service.

“Most times, bush burning is difficult for fire fighters to fight due to its multiple directional fronts and its nature of spreading wild as fast as possible,” he said.

Ohaa, who also doubles as state’s Chief Rescue Officer, also urged residents to desist from building on waterways in order to check the incidents of flooding and the attendant dangers.

He called on residents to always find time to clear their drains to checkmate frequent flash floods that had taken the people unawares in major cities in the state.

“The environment belongs to everybody. Our people should not engage in the attitude of not paying attention into what they do on it or causes problem to the environment that may affect other people,” he said.

The theme of the 2021 World Environment Day is ‘Ecosystem Restoration’.

Ecosystem Restoration means assisting in the recovery of the ecosystem that has been degraded or destroyed, while conserving the ecosystem that is still intact.

Healthier ecosystem with richer biodiversity yields greater benefits such as more fertile soils, nature nurturing humans, among others.

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