FG to prevent eruption of Lake Nyos

The federal government has reiterated its preparedness to take adequate measures to prevent any disaster posed by the threat of eruption of Lake Nyos in Cameroon.


Three ministers gave the assurance during a joint assessment of the N42.9 billion Kashimbilla/Gamovo Buffer Dam project in Taraba State on Saturday. They include: Minister of Environment, John Odey; Obadiah Ando of Water Resources and Minister of State for Power, Nuhu Way.
The project is designed to check the threat of possible flooding of Adamawa, Taraba, Benue, Kogi and Cross River, Delta and Akwa Ibom states in the event of the eruption of Lake Nyos.
Ando said that the project is “very dear” to President Goodluck Jonathan’s heart, considering its social, economic and environmental implications.
“We had earlier on sent our engineers from the Ministries of Water Resources, Environment and Power to come and assess the work even though we have our consultants on ground,” he said.“After the submission of their report, the permanent secretaries and other officials from the three ministries also visited and submitted their own report.
As you can see, the three ministers are here; we came to visit Kashimbilla Dam, which is a multipurpose dam, to supply potable water, irrigation and water for hydro-power to Nigerians.We have seen the project; we are happy with the job, the phase of the work, the quality of the work and the duration under which the work will be completed,” he explained.
Ando said that due to the importance of the project, the federal government had already paid N14 billion to the contractors.
Wya confirmed the possibility of generating 40MW hydro-power from the dam, adding that when completed, the host community of Kashimbilla, currently in dark, would be electrified.
The minister noted that electricity supply had improved nationwide since the inception of the present administration, adding that the ministry was currently working towards achieving the targeted 6,000MW.
He,however, promised that the current power failure being experienced in some parts of the country would soon be over.
Also commenting, Odey said that the collapse of the lake would result in flooding down stream, affecting millions of Nigerians, livestock and property, adding that the danger necessitated the proactive action by the government.
He said that the ministry had mapped out areas and installed early warning equipment at Kashimbilla to alert the communities along the Katsina-Ala River. He also pointed out that the most important component of preparedness was awareness creation, adding that measures were being taken in areas at greatest risk for possible evacuation.
Levy Uval, the General Manager of SCC Nigeria Ltd, the contractors handing the project, said that the project was currently at 30 per cent completion and gave assurance that it would be completed within 24 months.
The project is aimed at mitigating the environmental disaster the lake poses to Nigeria. The dam, when completed, would supply about 66,000 cubic metres of water daily to several communities for domestic and industrial use to about 400,000 people, in addition to irrigational activities covering 2,000 hectares.

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Linkedin
• Pinterest

Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday


Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users

You Might Also Like

« PREV

NEXT »