Abuja -The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) says the agency will collaborate with the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) to enhance environmental standards in the country.
The Director-General of the agency, Dr Anthony Anuforom, said this on Tuesday when a NESREA delegation led by its Director-General, Dr Lawrence Anukam visited NiMet in Abuja.
Anuforom said that the relationship between the two agencies was long standing, adding that it would ensure to address many environmental challenges facing the country.
He said that the emission from vehicle engines was one of the major contributors to air pollution on the environment which impacted adversely on human health.
The director-general said the collaboration with NESREA was very critical since air pollution could not be adequately controlled without the relevant meteorological parameter.
According to him, the collaboration will involve sharing of data between the two agencies to strengthen environmental standards and ensure proper environmental control to reduce the spread of diseases.
“We are ready to share data with NESREA on the issue of environmental control in order to reduce the issue of environmental vulnerability.
“We will commence by setting up a team from the two agencies to carve out the relevant areas of interest to synergise,” he said.
Anuforom explained that the collaboration would also cover flood and erosion control since flooding was one of the major aspect of environmental challenges facing the country.
Earlier, the Director-General of NESREA, Dr Lawrence Anukam, said that quality environmental control standards could only be achieved through effective collaboration with sister agencies, especially NiMet.
He said that much could not be achieved on the fight against environmental challenges without reliable weather and climate data.
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“We will like to work closely with NiMet so that together we can make sure that the quality of air we have is good for us.
“The idea is that every vehicle on Nigerian roads should have a reasonable quality of air emission in order not to cause visibility problem for the vehicles behind.
“These are some of the reasons why we feel there is a need for collaboration with NiMet because of its expertise and mandate,” he said.
The NESREA helmsman commended NiMet for its activities on the environment and the impact of its weather predictions on the environment and the economy. (NAN)