Law, Environment and Development Journal (Jun 2012)
Review of NESREA Act 2007 and Regulations 2009-2011: A New Dawn in Environmental Compliance and Enforcement in Nigeria - Country Legislation
Abstract
Nigeria’s formal environmental regime has developed significantly from humble beginnings. Having been initiated in the colonial period during which environmental issues were generally couched within public health regulation, and having developed in a rather ad hoc manner in the early days of independence during which heavy reliance was placed on the law of nuisance, Nigeria now has a relatively comprehensive environmental regime. This regime is administered by an array of institutions. This paper reveals that Nigeria now has relatively comprehensive environmental legal and institutional regimes adequately empowered to ensure effective compliance, monitoring and enforcement of all relevant treaties, legislation and regulations for sustainable development and conservation of natural resources in Nigeria. The NESREA Act 2007 and Regulations 2009-11 were instruments of necessity having learnt lessons from the drawbacks of its predecessor agency between 1991-2007. This review aims at providing an overview of a comprehensive environmental legislation in most recent times for effective protection of the environment, management of biodiversity and promotion of sustainable development in Nigeria. It further seeks to provide an overview of the unprecedented development in Nigeria’s environmental law by the coming into force of twenty-four environmental regulations made by the Federal Minister of Environment.
