The Ogun State government has launched a major environmental clean-up operation in the industrial town of Ogijo, Sagamu Local Government, following discoveries of widespread lead contamination from illegal battery recycling activities.
The exercise was initiated after a comprehensive Process Audit of all Used Lead Acid Battery facilities in the area, alongside extensive tests conducted on soil, water, air and blood samples taken from residents of the community.
Speaking at the flag-off ceremony, the General Manager of the Ogun State Environmental Protection Agency, Kehinde Bello, disclosed that the government had commenced the evacuation of hazardous slag illegally dumped in several communities across the town.
Bello explained that the evacuation process would take several weeks due to the large volume of slag scattered across multiple locations surrounding the battery recycling facilities.
“The evacuation of this slag will take us weeks to complete because lots of them are illegally dumped in many communities surrounding the ULAB facilities,” Bello said.
He assured residents that the state government was determined to complete the evacuation in the overall public interest and well-being of the people.
Bello further declared that the era of illegal slag dumping in Ogijo was over, adding that the state government had directed all ULAB facilities to upgrade their technology by installing automatic battery breakers to minimise slag generation.
He also warned that all operators must comply with the state government’s standard procedures on slag management.
The Director of Hazardous Material Management at OGEPA, Babatunde Lawal, said the clean-up would go beyond evacuation to include bio-remediation through the planting of specialised vegetation capable of absorbing lead residues from the soil.
Lawal explained that this approach would ensure that areas where slag had been dumped and later evacuated would be completely free from lead contamination.
He called on ULAB operators to run their facilities responsibly and sustainably to protect the environment and safeguard public health.
The Director of Inspectorate and Compliance at OGEPA, Tunde Bolarinwa, said the agency would intensify monitoring of all ULAB facilities to ensure compliance with the state government’s new operational standards.
Bolarinwa warned that any facility found violating the new regulations would face severe sanctions.
