Lagos State Government has raised alarm over potential contamination of underground water in the Lekki area, warning that many residents who rely on boreholes for water may be consuming unsafe water.
The Permanent Secretary of the Office of Drainage Services and Water Resources, Mahmood Adegbite, made the assertion during a recent stakeholders’ meeting in the state.
He cautioned that untreated wastewater in the Lekki axis was seeping into the water table, posing serious health risks to residents.
“On waste water treatment, I will say that everyone digging borehole within the Lekki axis is probably drinking what I will call ‘shit water,’” Adegbite said.
“However, if we are able to treat all the waste water within this axis which we have plans for, we should be able to also eradicate any form of disease that might result as result of non-treatment of our waste,” he added.
The government official stressed the importance of wastewater treatment to prevent the spread of waterborne diseases and emphasised the urgent need for infrastructure upgrades in the area.
Speaking on the state’s broader environmental challenges, Adegbite noted that more work remains in the fight against urban flooding.
“Yesterday, it rained heavily which is unusual because this is supposed to be August break. However, we started having it because of a lot of complex issues.
“Basically, in terms of flooding, despite the fact that we have committed so much, however, we still need a lot to do in that space,” he said.
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