Akwa Ibom Targets 700,000 Tonnes Of Waste For Energy Conversion

• State plans to turn about 700,000 tonnes of annual solid waste into energy, fertiliser and recyclable products.

• Government begins review of Uyo Urban Flood Control Master Plan.

• Akwa Ibom plants 18,750 trees across 30 hectares to combat climate change.

September 25, () – The Akwa Ibom State Government has unveiled plans to convert about 700,000 metric tonnes of solid waste generated annually in the state into energy and other economic resources, as part of its environmental sustainability drive under the ARISE 2.0 Strategy.

The Commissioner for Environment and Mineral Resources, Rt. Hon. Nsikak Ekong, disclosed this yesterday, during a ministerial briefing organised by the Ministry of Information at Akpan Isemin Hall, Uyo.

Ekong said the initiative was designed to move the state beyond conventional waste disposal by transforming solid waste into electricity, organic fertiliser and recyclable products, while creating employment and revenue opportunities.

He said consultants from India and the United States had already presented proposals on how the state’s waste stream could be converted into electricity and other useful products.

According to him, the plan would require effective segregation of waste at source, with households to be profiled to facilitate efficient collection, sorting and processing.

The Commissioner said organic waste would be processed into fertiliser, while plastics and other recyclable materials would be converted into reusable products, thereby turning what is currently considered waste into an economic resource.

Ekong said the initiative formed part of the environmental protection and remediation component of the ARISE 2.0 Strategy, adding that the administration of Governor Umo Eno was committed to developing a sustainable environmental management system.

He also disclosed that the Governor had directed the review of the Uyo Urban Flood Control Master Plan to provide a long-term solution to flooding arising from rapid urbanisation, changing drainage patterns and other environmental factors.

Pending completion of the reviewed master plan, Ekong said the ministry had intensified the desilting of drains and waterways across the state to improve water flow and reduce flooding.

He attributed part of the flooding challenge to indiscriminate dumping of refuse in drainage channels, stressing that effective waste management would therefore complement the state’s flood-control measures.

On illegal mining, the Commissioner said the state government had constituted a task force to identify, shut down and prosecute operators engaging in illegal mining and activities capable of degrading the environment.

He said the task force had carried out inspections across Local Government Areas, resulting in the closure of illegal mining sites and prosecution of offenders, while urging residents to report illegal mining and environmental degradation to the ministry.

On climate change mitigation, Ekong said the state was implementing tree-planting programmes in collaboration with the Federal Government, including the planting of 6,250 trees on 10 hectares in Ikot Ekpene and another 12,500 trees on 20 hectares in Ini Local Government Area.

He added that the administration was promoting cleaner energy through the transition to solar-powered street lights, the deployment of CNG-powered buses and the use of solar energy to power ARISE Compassionate Homes and Model Schools.

The Commissioner further disclosed that the ministry had facilitated the development of a Climate Change Law in collaboration with the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly, while also working to regulate outdoor advertising, billboards and signages that contribute to environmental defacement.

He said the ministry was also compiling a database of overgrown and dangerous trees across the state in preparation for a comprehensive exercise to remove trees considered a threat to pedestrians and road users.

Speaking, the Commissioner for Information, Aniekan Umanah, said the environmental initiatives should be viewed as part of the administration’s broader development strategy, noting that the government was also exploring bankable environmental projects capable of generating carbon credits from areas such as tree planting, biomass and other climate-related interventions.

Umanah said the emerging environmental economy could provide additional opportunities for investment and sustainable development while complementing the administration’s infrastructure and human-capital initiatives.

The Commissioner for Environment maintained that the government’s approach was to integrate environmental protection with economic development by ensuring that waste, land, forests and other natural resources were managed in ways that would benefit present and future generations.