NAN
An ecologist, Mr Habib Omotosho, has urged the Federal Government to intensify efforts to reduce the impact of climate change.
Omotosho, the National Coordinator, Environmental Advancement Initiative, an NGO, gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Tuesday.
He said that the Federal Government and relevant stakeholders needed to tackle climate change challenges to improve and sustain the nation’s climate and environment.
The ecologist added that it would also aid the efforts being made in order to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
According to him, scientific evidence shows that climate change is likely to have negative impact on the global effort to achieve the United Nations’ SDGs.
“In particular, climate change will obstruct efforts to reduce the existing poverty being experienced by some of the world’s population.
“Climate change is also likely to lead to changes in the ecosystem which will consequently contribute to degradation and reduce availability of water and food, globally.
“It is therefore more likely to become the world’s major driver of increased human conflict,’’ he said.
According to Omotosho, climate change is the rise in the earth’s surface temperatures globally due to anthropogenic or human activities.
The ecologist described climate change as the most disturbing global environmental challenge
According to him, the activities include burning of fossils, improper waste disposal, bush burning and deforestation.
“Climate change also known as Global Warming, actually begins with the greenhouse effect caused by the interaction between the Earth’s atmosphere and incoming radiation from the sun.
“Its effect is increased through anthropogenic activities. What this means, is that the atmospheric gases are primarily responsible for the greenhouse effect known as greenhouse gases.
“When water vapour, carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) are released in large amounts into the atmosphere through human activities, it increases the natural greenhouse effect which results in rising temperatures globally,’’ he said.