KWARA state government has reiterated its warning against charcoal production and threatened to sanction those violating the existing ban on the activity.

The state Commissioner for Environment, Shehu Ndanusa, disclosed this during a briefing in Ilorin, the state capital, on Friday, April 5.

“The law banning the production of charcoal in Kwara is still intact. Whoever is caught violating the law will be sanctioned accordingly”, he said.

He noted that a task force on charcoal production had been ordered to enforce compliance and seize vehicles conveying charcoal out of the state.

“Do not collect money from violators, make sure you confiscate the charcoal and the trucks and bring them to the Ministry of Environment for necessary actions,’’ he urged the enforcement team.

In 2018, Kwara state banned charcoal production and trade to protect the environment and preserve natural resources.

The state’s former governor, Abdulfatah Ahmed, signed an amendment bill prohibiting the production, transportation, storage or sale of charcoal into law.

The law also provides that offenders are liable to a fine not exceeding N100,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years—or both upon conviction.

Despite this law, The ICIR reported that tree felling has continued to thrive in the state.

The report also disclosed that between 2001 and 2018, 23,474 hectares of tree cover, representing 22 per cent, were lost to deforestation in the state.

Of this figure, 17,169 hectares were destroyed between 2011 and 2018.

The activity has persisted largely because of the hike in the cost of gas, which is forcing many Nigerians to turn to charcoal and other alternatives for their cooking needs.