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Is
the environment relevant in post-civil war Liberia?
Friday,
February 01, 2008
By Morris T. Koffa
I
read with interest the topic, “Liberia Government
Two Years Later: Who Made the Grade?” a performance
evaluation conducted by FrontPageAfrica,
about the functionaries of the government of
Liberia. Unfortunately, the Environmental Protection
Agency of Liberia was left out. Similar exercise was
carried out in the past by this institution, which in
my opinion brought some changes at some ministries and
agencies as reflective in previous evaluations.
The
exercise is quite informative and to some level gives
one an idea as to how the government is measuring up
in post-reconstruction efforts with respect to its
successes and shortcomings, considering the decadences
of the 14-year civil conflict. The exercise also
serves as an indicator from which benchmarks can be
established and progress optimized.
While
such an effort is applauded, most of us in the
environmental community felt left out, and find it
even depressing and difficult to comprehend that such
a meaningful exercise excluded not once, but twice the
Environmental Protection Agency of Liberia, a vital
component of the government.
The
EPA of Liberia was established in 2003, by legislative
act with the mandate to manage and protect the
environment of Liberia, and holds the keys to the
success of all functionaries of the government.
However, the environment from a holistic perspective,
borders every aspect of the ecosystem and particularly
the well being of humans, and demands an environment
that nurtures and ensures healthy human resources so
germane to the social, economic, political and
spiritual being of any society.
Liberia
has suffered enough environmental destructions and
continues to be the case for over one and the half
century of absolute neglect by our leaders, while the
lives of Liberians has been decimated by an
environment that offers nothing but pollution and
contamination. By neglecting an agency so charged with
such enormous responsibility suggests and tends to
legitimize the myth that the environment in Liberia is
less important and does not matter.
According
to the Ministry of Health & Social Welfare, life
expectancy stands at 41.5 years a person. In 2003, it
may be recalled; the UNEP Environmental Desk Studies
on Liberia put life expectancy to 47 years. In 2005,
life expectancy in Liberia dropped to 45 years,
according to an independent study. This steady
decrease of life expectancy in Liberia speaks volumes
of the problem on hand.
There
are noticeable progresses made by the government with
respect to the environment in Liberia. The appointment
of an executive director to head the EPA; securing new
garbage trucks and trash bins for the Monrovia City
Corporation (MCC), the ongoing campaign on
“precautionary” and environmental management plans
for industries to measure up, and Liberia’s
representation at International Environmental
Conferences are all glaring indications of some
progress.
But
there are even greater issues of life threatening
concerns that hangs over the government, which should
have been prioritized because of the gravity of the
issue. The lack of strategic and comprehensive
environmental plan of action based on short, medium
and long term-approach with some benchmarks to measure
success, spells out many unanswered questions to the
prevailing sanitary and solid waste crisis.
The
lack of sanitary landfill capable of receiving about
600 to 800 metric tons of garbage collected each day
in Liberia; particularly in the city Monrovia where
half the country’s population resides is the
underlining problem of the solid waste crisis. The
dumpsite located in the Fiamah Community, according to
the EPA, has been decommissioned. So where is the
garbage been dumped now? There are no incinerators to
handle medical wastes from hospitals/clinics – the
syringes, blood-filled bandages among others are
randomly thrown in wetlands, major tributary and
beaches, where most Liberians often gathered not
knowing whether a syringe stepped on is contaminated.
Hazardous/toxic
waste is a common scene in some neighborhoods that
have been there for some years. The Colonel West
Community of the Borough of New Kru Town remains a
site saturated with gallons of toxic oil spills from
the Liberian Electricity Corporation’s power plant
on Bushrod Island. Every effort has been made through
the appropriate authority to decontaminate, clean up
and possible evacuate the polluted area, but all
efforts failed and the perpetrator still conducts
business as usual while residents remain dangerously
exposed and later died, without any investigation from
government.
Poor
sanitation from solid waste and air pollution remains
a crisis and pose a challenge to government.
Deforestation still remains a critical concern in
spite of the new forest laws as reforestation is not
matching up to what is being said. Mining activities
are on the rise since the UN sanction on diamond was
lifted with little or no measure to protect the
environment. Environmental laws and ordnances on the
books lack enforceable mechanism, and EPA does not
have the capacity or trained personnel to police all
15 counties to ensure compliance.
The
EPA and other government agencies should be drawn to
the same standards to achieve the administration’s
deliverables quota. Defense of human resources is just
as important as anything else.
However,
public awareness needs to be accorded the
environmental state of Liberia to encourage
individuals’ behavioral change and the culture of
national neglect. Massive exposure and discussion of
this cardinal issue through institution like
FrontPageAfrica and other media inlets will help give
relevance to this very serious issue. The environment
must be intrinsically linked in all areas of the
political spheres of the country. We must move
Liberia’s environmental plight from the shadow of
the past and make it a recipe of the political circle
of the new Liberia. It must not be ignored anymore.
A
Clean Liberia is a Safe Liberia, please invest in its
Environment.
“I
think the environment should be put in the category of
our national security. Defense of our resources is
just as important defense abroad. Otherwise what is
there to defend?’ ~Robert Redford
Morris
T. Koffa is Executive Director, Liberia Environmental
Watch, Inc
www.liberiaenvironmentalwatch.org
He can be reached at koffamkoffa@yahoo.com.
240-417-2545
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