AN environmental campaigner and President, Green Energy Foundation, Engr. (Dr) Chris Chukwurah has called for proactive measures to reduce vulnerability and exposure to hazards by minimizing the impact of disasters on the environment.
Engr. Chukwurah made the call in his presentation titled “Environmental Health: Creating Resilient Communities through Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation” during the recently held 2024 World Environmental Health Day celebration at Model Technical College, Obiaruku, Ukwuani Local Government Area, Delta State.
The celebration was organized by the Environmental Health Officers Association of Nigeria (EHOAN) in collaboration with Green Energy Foundation (ECCCGEF), Asaba.
He pointed out that resilient communities can cope with disasters such as drought, flood and pollution in the atmosphere, biosphere, lithosphere and hydrosphere, but with the incidence of global climate crises, the environmental health officers must be equipped with the skills to handle the challenges.
Engr. Chukwurah named the consequences of disasters as loss of life and property, displacement and migration, economic disruption (agriculture, infrastructure, tourism), food and water scarcity, health impacts (heat stress, waterborne diseases), ecosystem degradation (biodiversity loss, habitat destruction), and social and cultural disruption and dislocation.
While asserting that efforts must be made towards creating resilient communities, Engr. Chukwurah pointed out that intersectoral collaboration was required to encourage synergy and understanding among health, environment, and disaster management sectors and their personnel as well as to address the complexities of environmental health. According to him, these include conducting vulnerability assessments and risk mapping involving pre-disaster analysis and forecasting potential threats of disasters such as floods, erosion, landslides, tornados, volcanoes, droughts, etc and developing and implementing climate-resilient plans and policies.
