Yuletide: NIWA clears water hyacinth from Omu Creeks, Ikorodu channels

In preparation for increased traffic on Lagos waterways ahead the yuletide season, the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) has flagged-off massive clearance of Water Hyacinth from Lagos water channels to ease transportation activities and aid safety of waterways users.

In a statement made available to newsmen on Wednesday, the Lagos Area Office of NIWA said that the project, which is ongoing, will cover the critical Lagos channels with high traffic of boat movements, starting with Omu creeks and Ikorodu water channels.

Already, Omu creeks have been cleared while the Ikorodu channels will take at least a week of intense clearance activities, including waste removal and disposal of the troublesome sea weeds.

Speaking on the exercise, the Lagos Area Manager of NIWA, Engineer Sarat Braimah stated that the effort is part of the agency’s key operational responsibilities and mandate to ensure smooth and safe sailing by boat operators and other stakeholders preparatory to the yuletide season when traffic on the waterway is expected to be high.

“We want to do what is right as we approach the Christmas holiday season which comes with an expected increase in boat transport activities. Incidentally, the season also heralds the return of Water Hyacinth around our waterways in Lagos, so the best is to proactively clear them even though the weeds have the capacity to rebound, but we are ready to sustain a safe passage for boats operations during and even after the yuletide,” the Lagos Area Manager explained.

On the same operational focus in other parts of Lagos, the Area Manager informed that the project will be extended to Badagry and Apapa water channels, noting that the Ikorodu water channel is most critical for now as the weeds births its way to other parts of Lagos littoral communities from this location.

“We are working round the clock to ensure this effort is sustained during this period and also the deployment of our River marshals to help keep eyes on boating operations during this period. It’s an expensive project and very demanding, but we are equal to the task as our staff are out there daily to ensure we deliver, ” Engineer Sarat Braimah added.