Understanding Nigeria’s Climate Instability: More Than Just Fossil Emissions

As the global conversation around climate change intensifies, the focus often lands squarely on fossil fuel emissions as the primary culprit. However, Nigeria’s climate instability, while influenced by global warming, has additional drivers deeply rooted in environmental mismanagement and policy failures. Let’s take a deeper dive into what’s really happening to Nigeria’s climate and landscapes—starting with my own personal experience.

At the turn of the century, I joined many others for our December retreat, a cherished time of spiritual reflection and preparation for the new year. As a young boy, this retreat was also an opportunity to wear new clothes, reunite with old friends, and make new ones. I fondly recall exploring the nearby streams, chasing grasshoppers, and plucking wild fruits. We played freely, often by the river that was once teeming with fish and bursting with life.

Fast forward nearly a decade, and that same river had shrunk to a pitiful trickle, winding through the now dry crevices. The fish had vanished, and the once lush surroundings were barren.

Misdiagnosing the Problem Many point to climate change as the reason for such drastic environmental shifts, but this is an oversimplification of the problem. These changes aren’t just about global warming; they are also the result of systemic environmental dysfunction, driven by misaligned policies and poor land management practices.

Take, for example, a recent analysis of GIS data on Abuja, Nigeria’s capital in this article. The once green city has seen vast portions of its vegetative cover replaced by concrete jungles and sprawling tarred roads. This urbanization has had a profound impact on the hydrological cycle. Here’s why:

Reduced Infiltration: As the city’s green spaces give way to impermeable surfaces, the rate of water percolation into the soil has dramatically decreased. Instead of being absorbed into the groundwater table, rainwater now rushes across surfaces, funneling directly into streams and eventually the ocean. Over time, this has led to a dangerous trend: increased surface water run-off and reduced groundwater recharge.

Consequences for Water Resources: The result is twofold: when it rains, the risk of urban flooding surges, as there is little soil to soak up the excess water. Once the rains subside, the streams and rivers run dry because they no longer benefit from steady groundwater replenishment. This vicious cycle amplifies water scarcity during the dry season and contributes to the flash flooding seen during heavy rains.

Water Abstraction: The Silent Crisis Another critical driver of Nigeria’s climate and environmental instability is the indiscriminate abstraction of groundwater. In a country where access to potable water is inconsistent, many Nigerians have adapted by digging boreholes, extracting water from deep underground aquifers. This widespread water extraction occurs on both individual and institutional levels, including government bodies.

However, this practice is unsustainable. As more water is pumped out from beneath the surface, the pressure on the water table increases, while the recharge of these aquifers is simultaneously hindered by the spread of impermeable surfaces. The outcome? A depletion of groundwater reserves that were already under stress. In many cases, water drawn from underground ends up contributing to surface runoff, further exacerbating the very problem of water wastage that Nigeria is grappling with.

Uncovering the Bigger Picture While fossil fuel emissions remain a significant concern, they are not the sole drivers of climate instability in Nigeria. The factors outlined above—poor urban planning, groundwater over-extraction, and environmental mismanagement—contribute significantly to Nigeria’s climate woes. These issues reflect a failure to understand and properly manage our natural resources.

Let’s consider a key statistic: Africa contributes just 3% of global carbon emissions. Yet, the continent is one of the hardest hit by climate change. This paradox points to the fact that local environmental policies and land-use practices play a critical role in the climate challenges we face.

What Can Be Done?

Nigeria must prioritize sustainable policies that address the root causes of its environmental degradation. Some key steps include:

Sustainable Urban Planning: Future city planning must incorporate sufficient green spaces and soil permeable zones to allow for natural water infiltration. Affordable housing should be central to urban development, reducing the need for sprawling, informal settlements that encroach on agricultural and virgin lands. This can limit urban expansion into crucial ecosystems.

Regulate Water Abstraction: Governments need to regulate groundwater extraction, placing strict limits on borehole drilling while ensuring that there are alternatives for accessing potable water. This can be achieved by investing in dams and other infrastructure that safely collects and stores surface water for human use. If unregulated abstraction continues, Nigeria will face the catastrophic depletion of its underground water resources, leaving future generations in a precarious situation.

Forest and Watershed Management: Forest cover plays a key role in regulating the hydrological cycle. Reforestation efforts and the preservation of critical watersheds should be prioritized to promote water infiltration and reduce runoff.

Conclusion We are already seeing the results of environmental mismanagement: prolonged dry seasons, increased flooding, loss of biodiversity, and shrinking rivers. These are not just the effects of global climate change driven by fossil fuels, but also a result of how we interact with our environment on a local level. If Nigeria is to curb these challenges and ensure a sustainable future, we must adopt a holistic approach that addresses both global and local drivers of climate instability.

The time for action is now—before the rivers we once played in are lost forever.