Lagos State Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, has said the Great Wall of Lagos will need to be extended to protect the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway from the impact of the Atlantic Ocean, noting that the new coastal infrastructure requires additional shoreline protection.
Wahab made the disclosure during an interview on ARISE News on Friday, where he explained that although the Great Wall of Lagos has successfully protected the coastline it was originally designed to defend, the construction of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway has created the need to expand the coastal defence system.
Responding to concerns over whether the Eko Atlantic reclamation project could pose future environmental challenges, the commissioner defended the project, insisting that it was scientifically designed to safeguard the coastline.
“That was scientifically done in a way that would save the stretch,” Wahab said.
He added, “With the coastal road running parallel, that wall will go parallel.”
When asked whether additional measures were required to protect the coastline, Wahab responded in the affirmative.
“Yes,” he said.
Asked specifically whether the Great Wall of Lagos would need to be extended alongside the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, he replied, “Because the coastal stretch must be protected.”
Wahab explained that the need for additional coastal protection has become more evident following drainage challenges associated with the construction of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway.
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According to him, flooding recently experienced in parts of the Lekki corridor, including Ologolo, resulted from changes in stormwater discharge caused by the highway project.
“Before the coastal road, there was no flooding at Ologolo. But the coastal road had to separate the downstream from the outlet into the lagoon,” he said.
The commissioner disclosed that the Lagos State Government had already submitted its drainage master plan to the Federal Ministry of Works to address the issue.
“We’ve given the master plan to the Federal Ministry. They have to discharge it under the coastal road into the lagoon, not to the right of it,” he stated.
The Great Wall of Lagos is an approximately 8.5-kilometre sea revetment constructed to protect Victoria Island, Eko Atlantic and surrounding coastal communities from Atlantic Ocean erosion and storm surges.
Built with millions of tonnes of rock and specially designed concrete accropodes, it serves as the primary coastal defence system for the Eko Atlantic development.
The Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway is a proposed 700-kilometre federal highway expected to connect Lagos to Calabar through nine coastal states.
The project is designed to improve transportation, facilitate trade and strengthen economic integration along Nigeria’s southern coastline, with sections of the highway currently under construction.