Lagos commences community tree planting campaign
Campaign
By Florence Onuegbu
Lagos, April 21, 2018 (NAN) The Lagos State Parks and Gardens Agency (LASPARK) says it has commenced Community Tree Planting Campaign across the 20 local governments and 37 local council development areas of the state.
Its General Manager, Mrs Bilikiss Adebiyi-Abiola, said in a statement on Saturday that the community tree planting campaign had the theme – ‘Plant A Tree’.
Adebiyi-Abiola said that the campaign was part of the preparations for the Year 2018 Tree Planting Sensitisation Excercise with the aim to sustaining the greening policy of the state government.
According to her, it has become crucial to continuously reawaken the consciousness of the people to tree planting and combat the negative effects of climate change in the community.
”The sacred responsibility of preserving nature lies in our hands and nature has been good to us, but our refusal to reciprocate this kind gesture is ungodly, inhuman and selfish,” she said.
Adebiyi-Abiola said that felling trees amounted to killing life, reducing biological diversity and cheating posterity.
”Therefore, the need to plant trees in our community is germane to healthy living,” she said.
LASPARK General Manager said that the Community Tree planting would cut across all LGAs and LCDAs with the active participation of NYSC members, non-governmental organisations and students.
She said that the campaign involved the participation of green compliance organisations, government institutions as well as CDAs/CDCs.
According to her, this year’s programme, flagged off at Agbado Oke-Odo LCDA on Saturday, April 21, would also hold at Epe Local Government on May 5.
”The programme will later move to Surulere LGA on May 19, while other hosting venues include Ikosi LCDA on June 3, Amuwo Odofin LCDA for June 17 and Ikeja LGA on July 1,” she said.
The environmentalist said that government was commited to clamping down on perpetrators of illegal tree-felling and pruning, and that permission should be sought from LASPARK before any tree could be felled or pruned as dictated by the law.
According to her, the agency has zero tolerance for tree-felling and would not spare the rod in bringing perpetrators to justice. (NAN) FON/AO/TÁ