Food security: Bowen makes case for soil degradation control in Nigeria.

College of Agriculture, Engineering and Science, Bowen University, has re-emphasised the importance of soil degradation control in Nigeria, as it appealed to every community in the country not to take soil protection process with levity.

It also appealed to all the three tiers of government in the federation to engage members of the community in a periodical sensitization programme to educate them on erosion management control to safe guide the environment.

The university made this call at a programme organised to mark this year’s World Soil Day in Iwo community and its environs held recently.

According to the university, the development would go a long way to enhance crop production productivity level and food security assurance in the country.

Speaking on the occasion, the Coordinator, Bachelor of Agriculture in the institution, Dr Tunde Lawal condemned Nigerians’ attitude towards erosion control and soil fertility safety procedure

He noted that Nigeria and African as a continent, lack respect for soil which he said was a resultant effect of poor quality and quantity of our crop outputs. He lamented that not many Nigerians appreciate that soil is one of the major factors that support life and ecology, saying that the earlier we acknowledge that soil is paramount to life, the better our society will be.

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HE noted that expedient it is high time Nigeria should put in place an effective mechanism that will safely guide the health of Nigerian soil. “ In view of this, Nigeria must disengage from deforestation, but rather plant trees and grasses and maintain good drainage to control erosion. We need to protect our environment for any agro-business to thrive in the country.

Speaking in the same vein, Dr Vincent Esan, of Environmental Management and Crop Production, Bowen University declared that failure of Nigerians to engage in strategies erosion control would jeopardize human and animal lives in our environment.

According to him, 33 per cent of soil in Nigeria has been depleted by erosion, saying that until every community in this country would give priority to soil fertility protection as suggested by environmental management experts, famine in this country may linger and its aftermath effect on the country may not be palatable. He said that one of the ways Nigeria can achieve its Sustainable Development Goals to protect the health of its soil, boost it to yield maximum products.

Similarly, Goodness Olutayo, a 500L, Environmental Management and Crop Production, Bowen University, decried the deplorable state of soil in Nigeria. He attributed community ignorance on erosion control to lack of environment management education

He then tasked every local government in Nigeria to take awareness campaign to protect your soil to safe guide your environment.