OGIJO/Nigeria: Environmental advocates, researchers, and community leaders have raised alarm over dangerous levels of air pollution in Ogijo, Ogun State, urging urgent government intervention and stricter enforcement of environmental laws to protect residents from worsening health risks
The call came during a media engagement organised by Sustainable Research and Action for Environmental Development (SRADeV Nigeria) in partnership with the Green Knowledge Foundation (GKF), where experts described Ogijo as an “environmental hotspot” overwhelmed by toxic emissions from industries and waste burning.
Dr. Leslie Adogame, Executive Director of SRADeV Nigeria, said Ogijo’s plight has gone beyond a local problem and now threatens national health security. “Air quality readings between 500 and 600 micrograms per cubic meter – far above WHO’s safe limit of 15 – show a community in crisis. The people of Ogijo are oppressed by the weight of industrial pollution. This is no longer a local issue, but a national emergency,” he warned, calling on the Federal and Ogun State governments to declare an environmental state of emergency.
Echoing the concern, Mr. Weyinmi Okotie, Executive Director of GKF, described clean air as a fundamental human right. “Too often, we speak of water as a right but forget that air is just as essential. The people of Ogijo deserve to breathe clean air. Industrial activities must not continue to poison women, children, and families while companies profit,” he said.
Presenting findings from the Ogijo Air Quality Monitoring Project, Dr. Babatunde Oladimeji revealed that PM2.5 particulate matter in the community exceeded global and national safety standards almost daily during the study. “The health risks include premature deaths, heart disease, lung cancer, asthma attacks, and even low birth weights. Ogijo residents – especially women and children – are dangerously exposed on a daily basis,” he said, identifying tyre burning, metal recycling, industrial emissions, and household waste burning as the leading culprits.
Mr. Collins Azuike, Communications Coordinator of GKF, placed the crisis within a global context, noting that air pollution kills nearly 7 million people worldwide annually. “In Nigeria alone, over 198,000 premature deaths have been linked to polluted air. Yet we lack the equipment, tools, and systems to measure or report these dangers adequately. Communities like Ogijo suffer in silence,” he said, urging Nigeria to align with the UN’s Racing for Clean Air campaign.
The coalition of NGOs called on the government to strengthen emission controls, mandate continuous air quality monitoring, penalise defaulting industries, and implement zoning reforms to separate residential and industrial areas. They also pushed for biomonitoring and epidemiological studies to track health impacts on residents.
“We commend Ogun State Ministry of Environment and NESREA for beginning to act, but time is running out for Ogijo,” Dr. Adogame declared. “Enough talking – it is time for action. Clean air is not a privilege; it is a right.”
Ogijo, an industrial corridor bordering Lagos, hosts plastics, steel, chemical, and battery recycling plants. Researchers using portable and stationary monitors between October and April found PM2.5 concentrations up to 40 times higher than WHO guidelines. Community testimonies included reports of recurrent miscarriages, childhood asthma, and cases of children misdiagnosed as smokers due to prolonged exposure.
