Harboursandport.com: Lagos----The
Nigerian Hydrographic Society (NHS), Lagos /South-West Zone, has
called for the establishment of a National Hydrographic Commission,
in order to drive policies on hydrography for full utilization of
hydrographic surveys to benefit the nation’s economy.
Mr.
Olumide Omotoso, the Hydrographer General of the Nigerian ports
Authority, who is also the Chairman NHS Lagos/South-West Zone made
this known weekend at the 2017 Hydro Summit titled “ Charting for
safety and Underwater Renewable Resources,” which held in Lagos.
Giving
a keynote address, Omotoso said a National Hydrographic Commission
would ensure more regular and sustained hydrographic surveys and
charting to support decision making for other benefits in the areas
of dredging, fisheries, security, and even telecoms.
“If
there is a national policy on hydrography to chart all the navigable
rivers in Nigeria we will do the survey and give it to government for
informed policy decisions.
“When
you have a national policy that says okay, you keep the data for
hydrographic survey, what we call the national hydrographic
commission, they will come out with programmes that show that we
need to prioritize our rivers, we survey it yearly and chart it, and
make it available to decision makers,’ he said.
Omotoso
added that the summit was to showcase the importance of hydrography
in a coastal nation as Nigeria, “The summit is to address the
applications of hydrographic surveying in terms of the kind of things
they can offer in Nigeria; taking inventory of all your rivers, both
inland and national waters and then your aids to navigation, safety
of navigation, nautical charting, and oil and gas.”
Highlighting
the critical place of maritime in the oil and gas operations, Omotoso
added that “We want to get it right, as in, every policy that
affects oil and gas must affect the maritime, especially in the local
content issue, because whatever applies most time to the oil and gas,
applies to the maritime.”
Speaking
further, the NPA Hydrographer General said that besides hydrographic
surveys for charts to ensure safe navigation, discovery and
protection of fish habitats is made possible also.
He
said “You want to apply hydrography to fishery and aquatic area;
you need to also carry out a survey to discover the fish habitat,
their breeding ground and be able to isolate that area for people not
to go and disturb that breeding area. And you can see what that can
contribute to national development.”
Omotoso
commended a proposed consideration by the Federal Government to
segment the Ministry of Transportation into Air Transport, Land
Transport, and the Marine Transport.
Mr.
Paul Adeyeye, a Hydrographer with Digital Horizon Compay, Port
Harcourt, made a paper presentation on “Charting for safety and
Underwater Renewable Resources.”
According
to Omotoso, the zone plans strategic moves for partnerships with the
south west states.
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