The Director General of the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA), Prof. Innocent Barikor, has threatened to revoke the licenses of battery recycling facilities in Ogijo, Ogun State, if they fail to clean up their operations and comply with environmental standards.
Prof. Barikor issued the warning on Monday during a meeting with operators whose plants were recently sealed in a clampdown on polluting facilities across the South-West.
Nine companies in the battery recycling sector were shut down for environmental violations, including poor slag disposal, manual battery breaking, uncontrolled lead dust emissions, and failure to provide workers with health surveillance.
“Facilities will remain sealed until verifiable corrective actions are taken. This is your opportunity to reset, demonstrate responsibility, and bring your operations into full compliance,” Barikor told the operators.
“NESREA has shown patience in the past, but that window is closing.”
The DG stressed that President Bola Tinubu’s administration is committed to protecting Nigerians from harmful industrial practices.
He ordered recyclers to evacuate hazardous slag at their own cost under the “polluter pays” principle, sign undertakings to abide by new compliance protocols, and register with the sector’s Producer Responsibility Organisation (PRO).
He also directed them to adopt cleaner technologies, stop indiscriminate dumping, and address facility-specific environmental risks before being allowed to reopen.
Supporting NESREA’s stance, the Director of Hazardous Materials Management at the Ogun State Environmental Protection Agency (OGEPA), Lawal Babatunde, accused the companies of ignoring state rules on safe slag evacuation.
The meeting was attended by industry stakeholders, including the Executive Secretary of the Alliance for Responsible Battery Recycling (ARBR), Mrs. Miranda Amachree, as well as operators in the battery and base metal recycling sectors.
