On Wednesday, the Lagos State Government revealed a state-of-the-art water check laboratory and mobile lab to be administered by the Lagos State Water Regulatory Commission (LASWARCO) as part of its efforts to monitor the quality of water served to residents as well as the effluent being discharged into the environment.
The Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Mr Tunji Bello, while speaking at the event at the Lagos state secretariat Alausa-Ikeja, stated that the commissioning of the water check laboratory located within the complex and the mobile lab is part of the plan of the state government to comprehensively address cholera outbreak in Nigeria.
Bello said: “Nigeria is seeing one of its worst cholera outbreaks in years. As of September 14, 2021, about 69,925 suspected cholera cases were recorded in 25 States across the country and Abuja according to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), while about 2,323 people have died from suspected cases of cholera this year”.
He further emphasised that the facility was a testament to the commitment of the administration of governor Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu to deliver Sustainable Development Goal Six (SDG 6) targeted at ensuring availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.
The Commissioner stated that the development would strengthen the pursuit of quality drinking water ensuring it is standard with the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Lagos State Drinking Water Quality and the WHO effluent quality standards.
He also advised all players and other critical stakeholders in the state’s water sector to imbibe and sustain the culture of willful compliance to regulations of the state.
While giving her welcome address, the Executive Secretary of LASWARCO, Mrs Funke Adepoju stated that the construction of the first State-owned water check laboratory was approved by the governor to assist the commission in discharging its compliance responsibilities with the aim of preserving the health and wellbeing of residents.
She further buttressed that the water check laboratory is equipped to carry out a wide range of water and wastewater analysis including physical and chemical tests, biological and chemical oxygen demand parameters, as well as provide laboratory support services for the polluted sites, among others.
“This water check laboratory will ensure among other things, Regulatory Compliance, Control Test Intensity Level, Repeatability and Objectivity through the offering of affordable rate for laboratory service irrespective of class or creed”, She added.
Adepoju also mentioned that both the water check laboratory and the mobile lab are equipped with facilities that can conduct water tests within five minutes. She assured that this current administration is committed to constructing other water testing laboratories in strategic locations across Lagos.
Speaking on behalf of industry experts, President of the Society of Testing Laboratory Analysts of Nigeria (SOLTAN), Dr Laoye Oluwafemi Oyediran, congratulated the government and LASWARCO management for the venture, adding that it would serve the intended purpose.
Also speaking was the Chairman of Governing Council of the Institute of Public Analysts of Nigeria (IPAN), Oyediran, who stated: “The advent of COVID-19 brought to fore the need for testing. Before it, not many people want to test but if you don’t test you will not know what you are going through and that is exactly why it is necessary to carry out the test in any of the various laboratories that we have”.
“The beauty of the project we are commissioning today is that we have a mobile laboratory which is the first-of-its-kind in Nigeria that is fully equipped to be able to serve and deliver service to the people on the go”, he added.
