Assessment of the Measurement of Greenhouse Gases Emission Level and their Mitigation strategies in Nigeria

Abstract

The challenge connected with the emission of greenhouse gases and the worsening quality of the environment has become of great concern to the environmentalists and policy makers alike. This study assessed the range of activities associated with or constituting the sources and measurement of greenhouse gas emission level and strategies of mitigating the impact of the emission level on the Nigerian environment. Secondary data derived from published and unpublished sources with simple statistical techniques for analysis of the data were used for the study. The temporal analysis covered a period of 1980 to 2014. The study found that a total of 7.37 X 10 8, 1.32 X 10 5 and 1.41 x 10 4 tons of CO2, CH 4 and N 2 O respectively were emitted into the environment, due to gasoline consumption from 1980 - 2014. About 2.08 X 10 8, 1.08 X 10 4 and 6.32 X 10 3 tons of CO2, CH 4 and NO2 respectively were emitted into the environment over the same period. It was also found that activities in the areas of transportation, industry, commerce and residence, agriculture, land use and forestry including those in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity constituted the sources of greenhouse gas emission. The study recommended that there was a great need of putting in place appropriate legislations to discourage gas flaring and other greenhouse gas emission and that green building technique including retrofits strategy should also be adopted in residential and commercial areas.