FCDA APATHY FOR NATURE AND THE CUTTING DOWN OF TREES WITHOUT CONSIDERATION FOR THE FUTURE 

By AVM RTD AKUGBE IYAMU MNSA fsi

There are no official figures for the number of trees in Nigeria but the country has about 211,370 square kilometres and roughly 26.1 million hectares of forest wooded land. Cutting down trees in Abuja is significant because the Nigerian Conservation Foundation report warned that Nigeria has lost a major portion of its primary forest cover in the last decade due to agriculture, logging and urbanization.

Trees are an important element of nature and many people in Abuja enjoy being in the gardens and around trees for the shade and beauty because trees produce oxygen and maintain the ecosystem.

Trees grow from seeds and can live for many years. There are different trees: fruit trees, flowering trees and evergreen trees. They provide shelter for birds and animals and spending time near trees can feel relaxing and peaceful and cutting down trees can harm the environment.

Trees are more than plants, they are essential for life and act as nature’s balance hence the design of Abuja was intentional to contain 40% green areas. Saving the trees is saving the future. We need more trees and take care of them every day.

The action of the FCDA is completely dismissing the importance as nature based solutions to roll back climate change and global warming. Abuja citizens are incensed by the actions of the FCDA in removing trees from the streets that is as old as the Territory.

We should be celebrating the wisdom of the designers of the territory in ensuring environmental protection and roll back to climate change.

There are bigger problems in the FCT than cutting down trees, cutting down trees is a fundamental reorganisation of water and pose environmental security. Abuja was uniquely designed after Brazil, Australia and the United states.

As the world is reordering efforts against climate change, FCDA is decimating the time tested nature based solutions; the citizens must take back their environment before it is too late. The more trees the city have, the more the temperatures are controlled and the issues that matter to FCDA is the issue that affects the people: that is the environment.

The environment is risk taking, sense making and future protected because trees are generational fixing solutions that pass on love across generations. And that tradition is worth defending.

For FCDA, they need to be aware that the best way to know a place is to slow down and know it differently, the trees are part of nature barriers to climate change. It is always a miserable time watching the disaster being gradually incubated across the Territory.

The FCT has a lot of problems that need attention and cutting down the trees is the least of them. If you backtrack on the actions of the FCDA; they are negative against the environment from destruction of green areas and spaces, shrinking the water and relief lines.

How do we connect the cutting down of trees to the wellbeing of citizens in Abuja. Cutting down of trees summarises the lack of understanding of nature and the actions required for us to fight climate change, we need the ethical renaissance and understanding of nature.

Trees have the ability to clean the environment, absorb greenhouse gases and reduce carbon dioxide and the more the are, the more the fresh air are circulated.

Trees are one of the most valuable gift of nature with a crucial role of maintaining the balance of the environment and help to reduce emissions and pollution. Without trees, life on earth will not be possible.

Therefore, Abuja must plant more trees and protect them for a healthier and greener life.

AVM RTD AKUGBE IYAMU MNSA fsi IS PRESIDENT ASSOCIATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AND CLIMATE CHANGE PRACTITIONERS AND CONSULTANT ON CLIMATE CHANGE AND ANALYST ON ENVIRONMENTAL POLICIES AND COMMENTATOR ON NATIONAL ISSUES