Essay: Environmental Policy in Nigeria

1. Introduction
In most parts of Nigeria, people have embraced residing or living around waste as part of their natural habitat (environment) and this have existed over period of years. However, the country have long established laws and formal governmental structures to address the serious environmental problems, but only a few have been successful in alleviating those problems (Bell and Russell, 2002). The weak implementation of policies on environmental sanitation have led to poor attitudinal behaviour and lack of concern by the people towards the environment (nature). This attitudinal behaviour can be most probably tackled through active and democratic public participation in policies.
Democracy is said to be the government of the people, by the people also for the people, therefore electoral democracy alone may not be sufficient, need for greater participation in all aspect of environmental decision-making to effect significant change (Rocheleau, 1999). Allowing the citizens through an active democratic participatory, have been observed by many experts as one of the most effective, productive and workable for many reasons, one of this, is the development of effective policy that are more clear and in the accordance with the people´s desire. Furthermore, the synergy in democratic participation is centred on several images about the democracy, national policy selection and environmental performance. These images include; the common citizen in society to dedicate strongly on the environmental rules and regulations coupled with its protection. The masses will use this to promote power among other things to drive decision-makers towards the policies that will guild and protect the environment (Kelso, 2006).
Therefore, the aim of this essay is basically to examine the strategy and effective environmental policy performance (outcome) in Nigeria in relation to the public or democratic participation.
2. The Origin of Environmental Policy in Nigeria
From the onset of British rule in the 1990s, Nigeria´s environmental protection effort was through colonial bye-laws and later the 1979 Federal constitution was pointed on environmental sanitation with special attention on refuse disposal and administration of solid and liquid waste from slaughter houses, residential houses, most of these are supervised local government council (Ola, 1984). Sanitation officials were mandated to carryout proper inspection, disposal of refuse from the residential and industry surroundings. These could not yield any positive result because of inexperience and unseriousness of the sanitary officers. The level of environmental disintegration and waste, associated with most cities in Nigeria in spite the effort of the government, nonetheless, led to the establishment of a new Environmental Sanitation Task Force in the1980s, in which each local councils are directed by Military officers to enforce, in order to improve the environmental health, through planting of trees and flowers, demolition of building that are not recognised by the town planning under the Nigeria law, clearing of bushes, clearing of gutter blockage, refuse disposal, the government was ready to keep the environment green and clean. Furthermore, Nigeria government declared every last Saturday of the month, a national sanitation day, in order to engage people and to participate in the environmental exercise, but the fines and the penalty of the defaulters were free of charge and the force was inactive. All the effort set aside was not achieved because of the autocratic system of government and also people were not empowered properly. Today, Government of Nigeria have not been able to find a better policy to reduce the poor environmental condition because of so many factors which are partly discussed below.
2.1 Problems Affecting Environmental Implementation and Execution in Nigeria
For many years, Nigeria has been experiencing poor environmental sanitation performance because of poor or inadequate policy implementation and execution. Other factors that are responsible for these includes, high level of corruption in the governmental system, lobby groups, lack of enforcement and negligence in the rule of law, conflict and political instability.
Corruption have been the major factors that hinder the effectiveness of the environmental policy outcome in Nigeria, this is everyday slogan use in all 36 states of the country. Environmental regulations are weak especially if the government official are highly corrupt (Damania, 2002). When the level of corruption is uncontrollable there will be a complete deregulation. Corruption have been the order of the day between the public (citizen) and the government officials, which for many years have retarded the growth of Nigeria towards implementation and execution of effective environmental policies that will drive and improve friendly environment (Welsch, 2004).
3. Promoting Environmental Performance in Nigeria: Deposit Refund System
It is very obvious that major cities in Nigeria are experiencing so many refuse around the road side, residential houses, schools and market places as seen in figure 1 below. Recycling subsidy (deposit refund system) is a normal practice in most developed countries where product packages and containers are recycled, but these are not found in the Nigeria system of environmental regulations.
http://images.google.de/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.channelstv.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2014%2F06%2Fwaste-disposal1-e1417622687260.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.channelstv.com%2F2014%2F12%2F03%2Fkaduna-residents-lament-poor-refuse-disposal%2F&h=241&w=360&tbnid=X9Fz18c7DwHlPM%3A&docid=bhLjs_XtJx1eUM&ei=qxdwVq-SLsL9PM_rqpgI&tbm=isch&iact=rc&uact=3&dur=6500&page=6&start=102&ndsp=21&ved=0ahUKEwjvk8Kp_t3JAhXCPg8KHc-1CoM4ZBCtAwgTMAU
Figure 1: Refuse dumped on road in Aba, Abia state, Nigeria.
In this system, consumers need to deposit extra amount which will be refunded when the consumer return the reusable part of the goods. This system can play a vital role to influence the behaviour of both the manufacturers and the consumers by affecting the demand for packaged goods. This method when billed into law will promote or add value in the recycling as part of significant effort to limit waste. Deposit refund approach can function in many other environmental problems that are beyond waste disposal like water and air pollution, paying an up-front fee on the product or consumption and checking activities by using those fee generated to rebate “inputs” (Fullerton and Wolverton, 2000).
3.1 Means to Engage Public on Environmental Issues in Nigeria
There are numerous ways to involve the public in the environmental issue for an efficacy of the environmental performance. The synergy between the government and its citizens in Nigeria can help to reduce the high environmental degradation and encourage a positive environmental outcome. Participatory democracy will aid to solve the issues with the effort of information and creation of awareness, regard for the rule of law, deviation in interests between the most powerful and the masses in a democracy, electoral accountability and mass mobilization. (Li and Reuveny, 2004).
Information and creation of awareness can be considered in order to promote the effective passage of information and creation of awareness to include environmental legal rights and responsibilities, usage of media, wakefulness campaigns. (UNEP, 2007). Most developing countries including Nigeria have failed in this area, to feed its citizens with proper information and education towards the need to keep environment clean and green. When the public lacks basic know-how on the sanitation needfulness, it likely to promote wrong attitudinal behaviour towards the nature. The present administration can choose to raise public notification or messages, through advertisement on the television, radio, social networks like Facebook etc. The government should target the rural areas where there are limited social platform, organised crusade to the areas and mandate the ministry of education to include environmental related subjects (modules) to all level of education as compulsory. Moreover, these environmental disintegration problem can be also address properly through the synergy among non-governmental bodies and civil society, private and public sector.
Secondly, Regards for the rule of law; political rights, liberty of expression and information encourage the reason for groups to engage in the environmental sanitation activities which in return promote the environmental legislation and the public awareness. (Schultz and Crockett, 1990). The government should work to generate new type of political organisation which will enlarge the means of democratic participation directly, involving citizens in making policies, through referendum.
4. Needfulness of the Democratic Participation in the Policy Performance
For a workable and an effective performance, democratic participation should be of an utmost important. The government of all level should work in pari-pasu (hand in hand) with the public. Its citizen requires to participate fully in the environmental sustainability, by exercising their franchise to elect a public leader that will engage fully in the environmental related activities. Democratic participation in an environmental policy shall encourage the quality of decision makers with output by providing decision makers with environmentally or socially necessary information and knowledge from the local stake holders, (Momtaz and Gladstone, 2008). The objective of the public participation in an assessing the environment impacts is to achieve more equal distribution of power through restructuring the existing decision structures (O´Faircheallaigh, 2010). These can be achieved through demonstration to show dissatisfaction to political, hence influencing the politics as much as they can.
In order to support the need for public participation in environmental policy, a case study of how public participation has been of help in solving environmental problem due to oil extraction in Delta state, Nigeria. It was presented by Muhammed and Demirci (2015). 11 survey questions was conducted with 250 people in three local government of the state (Udu, Isoku-North and Isoku-South). 155 male and 95 female is the ratio of the respondents within the age range of 26 and above. Out all the identified problems, oil spillage/Oil bunkering is rated the highest (228 respondents) followed by soil contamination/Land degradation (7 respondents). And 104 respondents noted that they have enough information about environmental problems in their communities. This was followed by 76 respondents agreeing that the local communities have a role to play in creating environmental problems and 72 respondents said everybody should be concerned about environment in his/her activity. But, on the other hand, the least recorded respondents (36) said they have more important problems to consider than the environment. The Table below shows the perspectives of people in solving environmental problems.
Table 1: Peoples perspectives about participation in solving environmental problems. (Muhammed and Demirci, 2015)
Statements Level of agreement
AS A N D DS AS+A
N % N % n % n % n % N %
State and public should work together to solve environmental problems 148 59.2 75 30 12 4,8 10 4 5 2 223 89.2
I am willing to cooperate with state to protect the environment 64 25,6 138 55,2 34 13,6 10 4 4 1.6 202 80,8
I can personally do something to protect the environment 50 20 143 57,2 42 16,8 6 2,4 9 3,6 193 77,2
Public participation is needed in solving environmental problems 84 33,6 109 43,6 32 12,8 14 5,6 11 4,4 193 77,2
I have cooperated with state in different activities for the environment 57 22,8 112 44,8 54 21,6 22 88 5 2 169 67,6
In most cases the needs people are not considered by the state in making environmental policies 53 21,2 112 44,8 55 22 25 10 5 2 165 66
Public has nothing to do in the environmental protection 35 14 52 20.9 54 21.7 63 25.3 46 18.5 87 34,8
Environmental protection is the state responsibility alone. 39 15,6 46 18,4 38 15,2 95 38 32 12,8 85 34
Note: AS, A, N, D and DS represent agree strongly, agree, no idea, disagree, and disagree strongly respectively.
Respondent View on Public Participation
The Table above shows the public views as well as their readiness to participate in solving the environmental problem. Majority of the respondent (89, 2%) agreed that there is a need for public engagement in solving the environmental challenges. 80% are ready to cooperate with the state to protect the environment. Moreover, the study revealed that high majority of (77, 2%) respondent believe that public participation is necessary reduce environmental issues Similar number of responded (77, 2%) agreed that they can protect the environment by their personal contribution. More than half 67, 6%) worked with the past administration government in various ways to protect the environment. The result in Table 1 indicated that the respondent believe, there was a need to participate on the environmental protection between the public and the state to reduce the environmental problems. About one-third of the respondent (38%) suggested that there public participation is not necessary. Close number of respondent (34%) agreed that environmental protection is the state responsibility. Notwithstanding, the respondents are willing to take part in solving the environmental problems, while ( 66%) majority believe often times, the need for local people are not regarded in implementation of policies.
5. Conclusion
The study concluded that for an effective environmental policy performance there is need for
References
Bell, R.G. and Russell, C. (1. Introduction
In most parts of Nigeria, people have embraced residing or living around waste as part of their natural habitat (environment) and this have existed over period of years. However, the country have long established laws and formal governmental structures to address the serious environmental problems, but only a few have been successful in alleviating those problems (Bell and Russell, 2002). The weak implementation of policies on environmental sanitation have led to poor attitudinal behaviour and lack of concern by the people towards the environment (nature). This attitudinal behaviour can be most probably tackled through active and democratic public participation in policies.
Democracy is said to be the government of the people, by the people also for the people, therefore electoral democracy alone may not be sufficient, need for greater participation in all aspect of environmental decision-making to effect significant change (Rocheleau, 1999). Allowing the citizens through an active democratic participatory, have been observed by many experts as one of the most effective, productive and workable for many reasons, one of this, is the development of effective policy that are more clear and in the accordance with the people´s desire. Furthermore, the synergy in democratic participation is centred on several images about the democracy, national policy selection and environmental performance. These images include; the common citizen in society to dedicate strongly on the environmental rules and regulations coupled with its protection. The masses will use this to promote power among other things to drive decision-makers towards the policies that will guild and protect the environment (Kelso, 2006).
Therefore, the aim of this essay is basically to examine the strategy and effective environmental policy performance (outcome) in Nigeria in relation to the public or democratic participation.
2. The Origin of Environmental Policy in Nigeria
From the onset of British rule in the 1990s, Nigeria´s environmental protection effort was through colonial bye-laws and later the 1979 Federal constitution was pointed on environmental sanitation with special attention on refuse disposal and administration of solid and liquid waste from slaughter houses, residential houses, most of these are supervised local government council (Ola, 1984). Sanitation officials were mandated to carryout proper inspection, disposal of refuse from the residential and industry surroundings. These could not yield any positive result because of inexperience and unseriousness of the sanitary officers. The level of environmental disintegration and waste, associated with most cities in Nigeria in spite the effort of the government, nonetheless, led to the establishment of a new Environmental Sanitation Task Force in the1980s, in which each local councils are directed by Military officers to enforce, in order to improve the environmental health, through planting of trees and flowers, demolition of building that are not recognised by the town planning under the Nigeria law, clearing of bushes, clearing of gutter blockage, refuse disposal, the government was ready to keep the environment green and clean. Furthermore, Nigeria government declared every last Saturday of the month, a national sanitation day, in order to engage people and to participate in the environmental exercise, but the fines and the penalty of the defaulters were free of charge and the force was inactive. All the effort set aside was not achieved because of the autocratic system of government and also people were not empowered properly. Today, Government of Nigeria have not been able to find a better policy to reduce the poor environmental condition because of so many factors which are partly discussed below.
2.1 Problems Affecting Environmental Implementation and Execution in Nigeria
For many years, Nigeria has been experiencing poor environmental sanitation performance because of poor or inadequate policy implementation and execution. Other factors that are responsible for these includes, high level of corruption in the governmental system, lobby groups, lack of enforcement and negligence in the rule of law, conflict and political instability.
Corruption have been the major factors that hinder the effectiveness of the environmental policy outcome in Nigeria, this is everyday slogan use in all 36 states of the country. Environmental regulations are weak especially if the government official are highly corrupt (Damania, 2002). When the level of corruption is uncontrollable there will be a complete deregulation. Corruption have been the order of the day between the public (citizen) and the government officials, which for many years have retarded the growth of Nigeria towards implementation and execution of effective environmental policies that will drive and improve friendly environment (Welsch, 2004).
3. Promoting Environmental Performance in Nigeria: Deposit Refund System
It is very obvious that major cities in Nigeria are experiencing so many refuse around the road side, residential houses, schools and market places as seen in figure 1 below. Recycling subsidy (deposit refund system) is a normal practice in most developed countries where product packages and containers are recycled, but these are not found in the Nigeria system of environmental regulations.
http://images.google.de/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.channelstv.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2014%2F06%2Fwaste-disposal1-e1417622687260.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.channelstv.com%2F2014%2F12%2F03%2Fkaduna-residents-lament-poor-refuse-disposal%2F&h=241&w=360&tbnid=X9Fz18c7DwHlPM%3A&docid=bhLjs_XtJx1eUM&ei=qxdwVq-SLsL9PM_rqpgI&tbm=isch&iact=rc&uact=3&dur=6500&page=6&start=102&ndsp=21&ved=0ahUKEwjvk8Kp_t3JAhXCPg8KHc-1CoM4ZBCtAwgTMAU
Figure 1: Refuse dumped on road in Aba, Abia state, Nigeria.
In this system, consumers need to deposit extra amount which will be refunded when the consumer return the reusable part of the goods. This system can play a vital role to influence the behaviour of both the manufacturers and the consumers by affecting the demand for packaged goods. This method when billed into law will promote or add value in the recycling as part of significant effort to limit waste. Deposit refund approach can function in many other environmental problems that are beyond waste disposal like water and air pollution, paying an up-front fee on the product or consumption and checking activities by using those fee generated to rebate “inputs” (Fullerton and Wolverton, 2000).
3.1 Means to Engage Public on Environmental Issues in Nigeria
There are numerous ways to involve the public in the environmental issue for an efficacy of the environmental performance. The synergy between the government and its citizens in Nigeria can help to reduce the high environmental degradation and encourage a positive environmental outcome. Participatory democracy will aid to solve the issues with the effort of information and creation of awareness, regard for the rule of law, deviation in interests between the most powerful and the masses in a democracy, electoral accountability and mass mobilization. (Li and Reuveny, 2004).
Information and creation of awareness can be considered in order to promote the effective passage of information and creation of awareness to include environmental legal rights and responsibilities, usage of media, wakefulness campaigns. (UNEP, 2007). Most developing countries including Nigeria have failed in this area, to feed its citizens with proper information and education towards the need to keep environment clean and green. When the public lacks basic know-how on the sanitation needfulness, it likely to promote wrong attitudinal behaviour towards the nature. The present administration can choose to raise public notification or messages, through advertisement on the television, radio, social networks like Facebook etc. The government should target the rural areas where there are limited social platform, organised crusade to the areas and mandate the ministry of education to include environmental related subjects (modules) to all level of education as compulsory. Moreover, these environmental disintegration problem can be also address properly through the synergy among non-governmental bodies and civil society, private and public sector.
Secondly, Regards for the rule of law; political rights, liberty of expression and information encourage the reason for groups to engage in the environmental sanitation activities which in return promote the environmental legislation and the public awareness. (Schultz and Crockett, 1990). The government should work to generate new type of political organisation which will enlarge the means of democratic participation directly, involving citizens in making policies, through referendum.
4. Needfulness of the Democratic Participation in the Policy Performance
For a workable and an effective performance, democratic participation should be of an utmost important. The government of all level should work in pari-pasu (hand in hand) with the public. Its citizen requires to participate fully in the environmental sustainability, by exercising their franchise to elect a public leader that will engage fully in the environmental related activities. Democratic participation in an environmental policy shall encourage the quality of decision makers with output by providing decision makers with environmentally or socially necessary information and knowledge from the local stake holders, (Momtaz and Gladstone, 2008). The objective of the public participation in an assessing the environment impacts is to achieve more equal distribution of power through restructuring the existing decision structures (O´Faircheallaigh, 2010). These can be achieved through demonstration to show dissatisfaction to political, hence influencing the politics as much as they can.
In order to support the need for public participation in environmental policy, a case study of how public participation has been of help in solving environmental problem due to oil extraction in Delta state, Nigeria. It was presented by Muhammed and Demirci (2015). 11 survey questions was conducted with 250 people in three local government of the state (Udu, Isoku-North and Isoku-South). 155 male and 95 female is the ratio of the respondents within the age range of 26 and above. Out all the identified problems, oil spillage/Oil bunkering is rated the highest (228 respondents) followed by soil contamination/Land degradation (7 respondents). And 104 respondents noted that they have enough information about environmental problems in their communities. This was followed by 76 respondents agreeing that the local communities have a role to play in creating environmental problems and 72 respondents said everybody should be concerned about environment in his/her activity. But, on the other hand, the least recorded respondents (36) said they have more important problems to consider than the environment. The Table below shows the perspectives of people in solving environmental problems.
Table 1: Peoples perspectives about participation in solving environmental problems. (Muhammed and Demirci, 2015)
Statements Level of agreement
AS A N D DS AS+A
N % N % n % n % n % N %
State and public should work together to solve environmental problems 148 59.2 75 30 12 4,8 10 4 5 2 223 89.2
I am willing to cooperate with state to protect the environment 64 25,6 138 55,2 34 13,6 10 4 4 1.6 202 80,8
I can personally do something to protect the environment 50 20 143 57,2 42 16,8 6 2,4 9 3,6 193 77,2
Public participation is needed in solving environmental problems 84 33,6 109 43,6 32 12,8 14 5,6 11 4,4 193 77,2
I have cooperated with state in different activities for the environment 57 22,8 112 44,8 54 21,6 22 88 5 2 169 67,6
In most cases the needs people are not considered by the state in making environmental policies 53 21,2 112 44,8 55 22 25 10 5 2 165 66
Public has nothing to do in the environmental protection 35 14 52 20.9 54 21.7 63 25.3 46 18.5 87 34,8
Environmental protection is the state responsibility alone. 39 15,6 46 18,4 38 15,2 95 38 32 12,8 85 34
Note: AS, A, N, D and DS represent agree strongly, agree, no idea, disagree, and disagree strongly respectively.
Respondent View on Public Participation
The Table above shows the public views as well as their readiness to participate in solving the environmental problem. Majority of the respondent (89, 2%) agreed that there is a need for public engagement in solving the environmental challenges. 80% are ready to cooperate with the state to protect the environment. Moreover, the study revealed that high majority of (77, 2%) respondent believe that public participation is necessary reduce environmental issues Similar number of responded (77, 2%) agreed that they can protect the environment by their personal contribution. More than half 67, 6%) worked with the past administration government in various ways to protect the environment. The result in Table 1 indicated that the respondent believe, there was a need to participate on the environmental protection between the public and the state to reduce the environmental problems. About one-third of the respondent (38%) suggested that there public participation is not necessary. Close number of respondent (34%) agreed that environmental protection is the state responsibility. Notwithstanding, the respondents are willing to take part in solving the environmental problems, while ( 66%) majority believe often times, the need for local people are not regarded in implementation of policies.
5. Conclusion
The study concluded that for an effective environmental policy performance there is need for
References
Bell, R.G. and Russell, C. (1. Introduction
In most parts of Nigeria, people have embraced residing or living around waste as part of their natural habitat (environment) and this have existed over period of years. However, the country have long established laws and formal governmental structures to address the serious environmental problems, but only a few have been successful in alleviating those problems (Bell and Russell, 2002). The weak implementation of policies on environmental sanitation have led to poor attitudinal behaviour and lack of concern by the people towards the environment (nature). This attitudinal behaviour can be most probably tackled through active and democratic public participation in policies.
Democracy is said to be the government of the people, by the people also for the people, therefore electoral democracy alone may not be sufficient, need for greater participation in all aspect of environmental decision-making to effect significant change (Rocheleau, 1999). Allowing the citizens through an active democratic participatory, have been observed by many experts as one of the most effective, productive and workable for many reasons, one of this, is the development of effective policy that are more clear and in the accordance with the people´s desire. Furthermore, the synergy in democratic participation is centred on several images about the democracy, national policy selection and environmental performance. These images include; the common citizen in society to dedicate strongly on the environmental rules and regulations coupled with its protection. The masses will use this to promote power among other things to drive decision-makers towards the policies that will guild and protect the environment (Kelso, 2006).
Therefore, the aim of this essay is basically to examine the strategy and effective environmental policy performance (outcome) in Nigeria in relation to the public or democratic participation.
2. The Origin of Environmental Policy in Nigeria
From the onset of British rule in the 1990s, Nigeria´s environmental protection effort was through colonial bye-laws and later the 1979 Federal constitution was pointed on environmental sanitation with special attention on refuse disposal and administration of solid and liquid waste from slaughter houses, residential houses, most of these are supervised local government council (Ola, 1984). Sanitation officials were mandated to carryout proper inspection, disposal of refuse from the residential and industry surroundings. These could not yield any positive result because of inexperience and unseriousness of the sanitary officers. The level of environmental disintegration and waste, associated with most cities in Nigeria in spite the effort of the government, nonetheless, led to the establishment of a new Environmental Sanitation Task Force in the1980s, in which each local councils are directed by Military officers to enforce, in order to improve the environmental health, through planting of trees and flowers, demolition of building that are not recognised by the town planning under the Nigeria law, clearing of bushes, clearing of gutter blockage, refuse disposal, the government was ready to keep the environment green and clean. Furthermore, Nigeria government declared every last Saturday of the month, a national sanitation day, in order to engage people and to participate in the environmental exercise, but the fines and the penalty of the defaulters were free of charge and the force was inactive. All the effort set aside was not achieved because of the autocratic system of government and also people were not empowered properly. Today, Government of Nigeria have not been able to find a better policy to reduce the poor environmental condition because of so many factors which are partly discussed below.
2.1 Problems Affecting Environmental Implementation and Execution in Nigeria
For many years, Nigeria has been experiencing poor environmental sanitation performance because of poor or inadequate policy implementation and execution. Other factors that are responsible for these includes, high level of corruption in the governmental system, lobby groups, lack of enforcement and negligence in the rule of law, conflict and political instability.
Corruption have been the major factors that hinder the effectiveness of the environmental policy outcome in Nigeria, this is everyday slogan use in all 36 states of the country. Environmental regulations are weak especially if the government official are highly corrupt (Damania, 2002). When the level of corruption is uncontrollable there will be a complete deregulation. Corruption have been the order of the day between the public (citizen) and the government officials, which for many years have retarded the growth of Nigeria towards implementation and execution of effective environmental policies that will drive and improve friendly environment (Welsch, 2004).
3. Promoting Environmental Performance in Nigeria: Deposit Refund System
It is very obvious that major cities in Nigeria are experiencing so many refuse around the road side, residential houses, schools and market places as seen in figure 1 below. Recycling subsidy (deposit refund system) is a normal practice in most developed countries where product packages and containers are recycled, but these are not found in the Nigeria system of environmental regulations.
http://images.google.de/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.channelstv.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2014%2F06%2Fwaste-disposal1-e1417622687260.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.channelstv.com%2F2014%2F12%2F03%2Fkaduna-residents-lament-poor-refuse-disposal%2F&h=241&w=360&tbnid=X9Fz18c7DwHlPM%3A&docid=bhLjs_XtJx1eUM&ei=qxdwVq-SLsL9PM_rqpgI&tbm=isch&iact=rc&uact=3&dur=6500&page=6&start=102&ndsp=21&ved=0ahUKEwjvk8Kp_t3JAhXCPg8KHc-1CoM4ZBCtAwgTMAU
Figure 1: Refuse dumped on road in Aba, Abia state, Nigeria.
In this system, consumers need to deposit extra amount which will be refunded when the consumer return the reusable part of the goods. This system can play a vital role to influence the behaviour of both the manufacturers and the consumers by affecting the demand for packaged goods. This method when billed into law will promote or add value in the recycling as part of significant effort to limit waste. Deposit refund approach can function in many other environmental problems that are beyond waste disposal like water and air pollution, paying an up-front fee on the product or consumption and checking activities by using those fee generated to rebate “inputs” (Fullerton and Wolverton, 2000).
3.1 Means to Engage Public on Environmental Issues in Nigeria
There are numerous ways to involve the public in the environmental issue for an efficacy of the environmental performance. The synergy between the government and its citizens in Nigeria can help to reduce the high environmental degradation and encourage a positive environmental outcome. Participatory democracy will aid to solve the issues with the effort of information and creation of awareness, regard for the rule of law, deviation in interests between the most powerful and the masses in a democracy, electoral accountability and mass mobilization. (Li and Reuveny, 2004).
Information and creation of awareness can be considered in order to promote the effective passage of information and creation of awareness to include environmental legal rights and responsibilities, usage of media, wakefulness campaigns. (UNEP, 2007). Most developing countries including Nigeria have failed in this area, to feed its citizens with proper information and education towards the need to keep environment clean and green. When the public lacks basic know-how on the sanitation needfulness, it likely to promote wrong attitudinal behaviour towards the nature. The present administration can choose to raise public notification or messages, through advertisement on the television, radio, social networks like Facebook etc. The government should target the rural areas where there are limited social platform, organised crusade to the areas and mandate the ministry of education to include environmental related subjects (modules) to all level of education as compulsory. Moreover, these environmental disintegration problem can be also address properly through the synergy among non-governmental bodies and civil society, private and public sector.
Secondly, Regards for the rule of law; political rights, liberty of expression and information encourage the reason for groups to engage in the environmental sanitation activities which in return promote the environmental legislation and the public awareness. (Schultz and Crockett, 1990). The government should work to generate new type of political organisation which will enlarge the means of democratic participation directly, involving citizens in making policies, through referendum.
4. Needfulness of the Democratic Participation in the Policy Performance
For a workable and an effective performance, democratic participation should be of an utmost important. The government of all level should work in pari-pasu (hand in hand) with the public. Its citizen requires to participate fully in the environmental sustainability, by exercising their franchise to elect a public leader that will engage fully in the environmental related activities. Democratic participation in an environmental policy shall encourage the quality of decision makers with output by providing decision makers with environmentally or socially necessary information and knowledge from the local stake holders, (Momtaz and Gladstone, 2008). The objective of the public participation in an assessing the environment impacts is to achieve more equal distribution of power through restructuring the existing decision structures (O´Faircheallaigh, 2010). These can be achieved through demonstration to show dissatisfaction to political, hence influencing the politics as much as they can.
In order to support the need for public participation in environmental policy, a case study of how public participation has been of help in solving environmental problem due to oil extraction in Delta state, Nigeria. It was presented by Muhammed and Demirci (2015). 11 survey questions was conducted with 250 people in three local government of the state (Udu, Isoku-North and Isoku-South). 155 male and 95 female is the ratio of the respondents within the age range of 26 and above. Out all the identified problems, oil spillage/Oil bunkering is rated the highest (228 respondents) followed by soil contamination/Land degradation (7 respondents). And 104 respondents noted that they have enough information about environmental problems in their communities. This was followed by 76 respondents agreeing that the local communities have a role to play in creating environmental problems and 72 respondents said everybody should be concerned about environment in his/her activity. But, on the other hand, the least recorded respondents (36) said they have more important problems to consider than the environment. The Table below shows the perspectives of people in solving environmental problems.
Table 1: Peoples perspectives about participation in solving environmental problems. (Muhammed and Demirci, 2015)
Statements Level of agreement
AS A N D DS AS+A
N % N % n % n % n % N %
State and public should work together to solve environmental problems 148 59.2 75 30 12 4,8 10 4 5 2 223 89.2
I am willing to cooperate with state to protect the environment 64 25,6 138 55,2 34 13,6 10 4 4 1.6 202 80,8
I can personally do something to protect the environment 50 20 143 57,2 42 16,8 6 2,4 9 3,6 193 77,2
Public participation is needed in solving environmental problems 84 33,6 109 43,6 32 12,8 14 5,6 11 4,4 193 77,2
I have cooperated with state in different activities for the environment 57 22,8 112 44,8 54 21,6 22 88 5 2 169 67,6
In most cases the needs people are not considered by the state in making environmental policies 53 21,2 112 44,8 55 22 25 10 5 2 165 66
Public has nothing to do in the environmental protection 35 14 52 20.9 54 21.7 63 25.3 46 18.5 87 34,8
Environmental protection is the state responsibility alone. 39 15,6 46 18,4 38 15,2 95 38 32 12,8 85 34
Note: AS, A, N, D and DS represent agree strongly, agree, no idea, disagree, and disagree strongly respectively.
Respondent View on Public Participation
The Table above shows the public views as well as their readiness to participate in solving the environmental problem. Majority of the respondent (89, 2%) agreed that there is a need for public engagement in solving the environmental challenges. 80% are ready to cooperate with the state to protect the environment. Moreover, the study revealed that high majority of (77, 2%) respondent believe that public participation is necessary reduce environmental issues Similar number of responded (77, 2%) agreed that they can protect the environment by their personal contribution. More than half 67, 6%) worked with the past administration government in various ways to protect the environment. The result in Table 1 indicated that the respondent believe, there was a need to participate on the environmental protection between the public and the state to reduce the environmental problems. About one-third of the respondent (38%) suggested that there public participation is not necessary. Close number of respondent (34%) agreed that environmental protection is the state responsibility. Notwithstanding, the respondents are willing to take part in solving the environmental problems, while ( 66%) majority believe often times, the need for local people are not regarded in implementation of policies.
5. Conclusion
The study concluded that for an effective environmental policy performance there is need for
References
Bell, R.G. and Russell, C. (