By Deji Abdulwahab
Abuja – An ecologist, Mr Habib Omotosho, on Thursday warned Nigerians to desist from bush burning and illegal hunting so as to preserve the nation’s ecosystem.
Omotosho, who is the National Coordinator, Environmental Advancement Initiative, an NGO, gave the advice in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.
He expressed regret that most of the nation’s forest reserves had been degraded through excessive tree felling, bush burning and uncontrolled hunting activities.
The ecologist underscored the need for stakeholders in the wood industry to plant trees to replace the felled ones so as to mitigate the effects of climate change in the country.
Omotosho urged state and local governments to check unrestrained hunting so as to protect endangered animal species from extinction and preserve the environment.
“Some of the factors adversely affecting biodiversity conservation in Nigeria are indiscriminate bush burning, illegal hunting of animals and deforestation.
“Others are land clearing for crop growing, uncontrolled logging, over-grazing and population pressures,’’ he said.
Omotosho called for the adoption of purposeful wildlife conservation and management procedures as a means of dealing with the social and ecological challenges facing the country. (NAN)