Microbiologist Calls On Govts. To Provide Adequate Health Safety In Abattoirs

Professor of Microbiology, Bolanle Opere has called on federal and state governments to put in place measures to safely dispose anti microbial waste from human and animal health systems, especially abattoirs, and manufacturing facilities.

Opere, lecturer at the Department of Microbiology,Faculty of Science made this assertion at the 90th inaugural lecture of Lagos State University (LASU),Ojo on Tuesday, in Lagos.

The theme of the inaugural lecture is :”Microbes in the Environment: Unseen Femmes Fatales and Virtuous Saviours”.

She said that wastes were generated everyday, and it would continue to be so, as long as humans and animals exist.

“The quest of man for animal protein, especially from cow, has led to increased number of abattoirs and the resultant volume of wastewater from processing of the cow meat.

“Wastes that are not properly managed and disposed end up polluting the environment.

“Although efforts have been geared towards curbing the menace of pollution around the world, particularly by the United Nations,  nevertheless, in many parts of the world, human activities such as animal production still impact negatively on the environment, ”Opere said.

She said that consideration was hardly given to safety practices during animal transport to the abattoirs, during slaughter and dressing.

“For example, during dressing, the oesophagus of cattle and sheep should be sealed to prevent leakage of animal contents.

“These ineptitudes often lead to contaminations from hides, hooves and content of alimentary tract during evisceration and negatively impact on the environment, soil, surface and ground water,” Opere said.

The professor said that during a study, soil samples were collected from Agege abattoir contaminated area and the neighborhood without wastewater contamination.

“Agege abattoir was chosen for soil sample collection because slaughtering activities were relatively higher and the abattoir was well demarcated with a fence.

“High level of contamination of the abattoir wastewater, as revealed in this study, further confirmed the dangers associated with discharging untreated wastewater to the environment, thus, the need for adequate treatment to ensure decontamination,” Opere said.