The Lagos State Government has arrested 5,715 persons for highway crossing, 3,886 others for offences ranging from street trading, environmental pollution and cart-pushing, 102 for open defecation, and 931 others for waste management offences.

The Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, disclosed this yesterday during the 2026 Ministerial Press briefing marking the seventh year of the Babajide Sanwo-Olu administration in the environment sector, held at the Bagauda Kaltho Press Centre, Alausa.

He reaffirmed the state government’s commitment to transitioning towards a zero-waste economy through strategic partnerships, improved landfill operations, recycling initiatives and waste-to-energy projects.

The Commissioner also reiterated the administration’s resolve to build a cleaner, healthier, flood-resilient and environmentally sustainable megacity.

Wahab highlighted achievements across environmental sanitation, waste management, drainage infrastructure, climate governance, beautification, water supply, wastewater management and environmental enforcement.

He stated that one of the major milestones of the administration was the successful reintroduction of the monthly statewide environmental sanitation exercise, aimed at restoring environmental consciousness and improving community participation in sanitation practices across Lagos State.

“The exercise recorded massive participation from residents, local governments, private organisations and state officials, demonstrating renewed public commitment to environmental cleanliness,” he said.

Wahab noted that the ministry intensified enforcement activities through its agencies, leading to the arrest and prosecution of environmental offenders, removal of illegal traders and squatters, and issuance of environmental abatement notices across the state.

He added that the ministry commissioned the Ikosi Waste-to-Energy Biodigester Plant located within the Ketu Fruit Market, noting that the facility converts organic waste into electricity, cooking gas and agricultural fertiliser.

“The plant processes 0.5 tonnes of organic waste per day and generates 30kWH of electricity daily for lighting and cold storage, delivering an estimated annual emission savings of 9,000tCO2e,” he said.

Speaking on waste management, the commissioner said the ministry had improved landfill operational efficiency and waste truck turnaround time. He added that following a performance evaluation exercise, the operating licences of five underperforming PSP operators were withdrawn.

According to him, the state also strengthened healthcare waste collection by deploying 35 new PSP operators to health facilities across the three senatorial districts. He added that 3,920 health facilities were registered statewide, with between 80,000kg and 105,000kg of medical waste treated monthly.

He said the ministry had sustained the ban on Styrofoam and single-use plastics over the past year, with the removal of 137,530.94kg of PET plastics from the environment, while significantly boosting plastic recycling and resource recovery efforts.

Wahab also reported achievements in climate governance, air quality management and environmental sustainability, noting that Lagos retained its position as Nigeria’s top-performing state in climate governance for the second consecutive year.

He said, “The ministry continued its tradition of tree planting, recording 16,966 planted trees across the five divisions of the state, while new recreational parks were created and existing ones renovated.”

He explained that flood control and drainage infrastructure remained a major focus of the administration, with extensive dredging, drainage cleaning and channel construction projects executed across the state.

“The ministry maintained and cleaned 18 primary channels covering 76 kilometres and secondary channels spanning 178 kilometres, while also removing illegal structures obstructing drainage alignments,” he said.

Wahab added that operatives of the Emergency Flood Abatement Gang responded to flood-prone areas and black spots covering approximately 210 kilometres across Lagos, reinforcing the state government’s determination to mitigate flooding and improve stormwater management in vulnerable communities.

In the water resources sector, the commissioner reported significant progress with the commissioning of the rehabilitated one million gallons-per-day Akilo Mini Waterworks. He added that steady progress was being made on the Adiyan Phase II Water Treatment Plant project and the expansion of potable water infrastructure. (The Guardian)

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