Wetland Conservation and Protection; Implications for Sustainable Flood Disaster Management in a Critical Urban Fringe Area of Port Harcourt
Journal Title: Archives of Organic and Inorganic Chemical Sciences - Year 2018, Vol 2, Issue 3
Abstract
The study investigated the perception of indigenous people to wetland conservation and protection in Rumuagholu community in Obio/Akpor L.G.A of Rivers State. Experimental and survey research design were adopted in the study. Three hundred and sixty two respondents were randomly selected as the sample size for the study. Data for the study were collected using questionnaire while field measurements were obtained through satellite imagery as to ascertain the extent of wetlands in the community before and presently. Tables were used in the presentation of the result of the study. The study revealed that the people in the area do not practice wetland conservation and protection, Wetland distribution in Rumuagholu community has both spatial and temporal variation. It also revealed that wetland within the period of the study lost 10.64% its original state moving from 11km2 to 6km2 and that Loss of biodiversity in the Rumuagholu Community is a major effect of wetland loss. The study recommended the need to encourage effective urban planning mechanism that will help curtail the excessive use of wetlands, and that Government should as a matter of urgency buy up the remaining wetlands to forestall its conversion to other uses because of its role in flood management and water provision as well as eco tourism. Wetland ecosystems are the most diverse and productive ecosystems on Earth and includes marshes, lakes, rivers flood basin, ponds, estuarine deltas, rice filed marine water areas where the depth at low tide does not exceed 6m (convention on wetland 1971) as cited in Wonodi [1]. Wetlands are important elements of Nigeria's watershed systems [2-4]. A great deal of the hydrological and water resources problems currently experienced in Nigeria are the resultant effects of wetland degradation in the country. The challenges posed by the degradation can better be understood and better appreciated when viewed against the backdrop of the benefits derivable from the wetlands. The current use and management of water and wetland resources is dominated by the construction of large dams to store much of the available water for hydropower, irrigation and urban water supply. This practice, which serves to exacerbate the climate variability and change impacts, has often left too little for maintaining the traditional wetland function downstream and caused significant stream flow regime change in most of the major wetlands in Nigeria.
Authors and Affiliations
Umeuduji JE, Chuku C, Chukwu Okeah GO
Keywords
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- EP ID EP602990
- DOI 10.32474/AOICS.2018.02.000136
- Views 68
- Downloads 0
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