Impact of Environmental Laws and Regulations on Nigerian Environment

Oluwadare Joshua OYEBODE

Environmental laws and regulations must be enacted for sustainability and improvement of Nigerian Environment. This paper analyzes and articulates the impact of environmental governance in Nigeria. It identified various environmental challenges confronting Nigeria and justification for regulation. This focused on strategies that will increase the efficiency of environmental regulation and ensure the optimal maximization of social and environmental welfare. Drawing from the economic analysis of legal rules this paper identified normative reasons for the poor formulation and implementation of environmental law in Nigeria which resulted in increased pollution and environmental injustice. The paper concluded by proffering practical regulatory techniques that can challenge policymaker to improve environment governance in Nigeria. On the basis of this analysis, innovate environmental governance strategy may be identified and new solutions developed. Environmental degradation has continued to generate unpleasant challenges for health and economic development in Nigeria. Some of these Problems include deforestation, pollution, global warming and improper pesticides. Despite environmental laws and policies targeted at ameliorating these problems, the situation in Nigeria seems degenerating owing to the fact that these laws are not effectively enforced. This paper analyses the use of environmental laws by different enforcement agencies in Nigeria, the methods of enforcement these agencies invoke, and the challenges they face in enforcing the relevant laws. These challenges include low-level constitutional provision for environmental protection, roles and conflicts in environmental management, undue adherence to legalism by the courts and absence of mandatory disclosure of information. Thus, the legislative objectives remain unachieved because enforcement is superficial; excessive time exists between non-compliance and enforcement; available punishment for non-compliance is inadequate; injured parties are not properly compensated; and some environmental crimes receive administrative instead of remedial measures or criminal punishments. The study advocates for the encouragement of private and public interest litigation, creation of procedure for enhancing public participation in Nigerian environmental protection, creation of environmental emergencies and establishment of environmental courts.