ABSTRACT
Water security is the capacity of a population to safeguard sustainable access to adequate quantities of acceptable quality water for use. Human Rights principles recognise the right of everyone to access sufficient, safe, acceptable, physically accessible and affordable water for personal and domestic use. Nigeria is grappling with achieving water security because of challenges posed by improper disposal of domestic wastewater in the face of ineffective strategies for managing domestic wastewater production. Existing legal framework on this area like Section 20 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (As amended) and the National Effluents Limitations Regulation of 1991 amongst others do not address issues of domestic wastewater management. At best they are preventive and prohibitive. Available statistics show that over 47 million Nigerians rely exclusively on surface water to meet their needs (E.O. Long et al, 2010) while some 130 million people do not have adequate water in Nigeria (WASHwatch). Whereas, countries like Israel, United Kingdom and South Africa have surmounted this challenge by reusing treated Domestic Waste Water as an alternative safe water resource. This study explored the potentials of an effective legal framework on domestic wastewater management in achieving water security in Nigeria. The study utilized the doctrinal method.
The study found that management of untreated domestic wastewater in Nigeria is largely ineffective and under regulated leading to water pollution and insecurity; it further found that The Human Rights Principles which include, participation, accountability, non-discrimination, empowerment and legal redress which form the elemental bedrock for domestic wastewater management is grossly ineffective in Nigeria. It also found that existing legal framework on waste management are generally ineffective for tackling domestic wastewater management, particularly as the extant legislations fail to address the issue of domestic wastewater management in Nigeria; and finally, that Israel, South Africa and United Kingdom have an effective legal and policies frameworks that ensures proper and comprehensive domestic wastewater management system that could be a lesson for Nigeria.
The review of existing laws on waste, wastewater and water quality revealed that there are no provisions for Domestic Waste Water Management in Nigeria. Consequently, this study argues that Nigeria needs a legal and regulatory framework hinged on Human Rights Based Approach as is the practice in other jurisdictions like Israel, United Kingdom and South Africa; which focus on centralization of wastewater collection, treatment and distribution for reuse that will adequately address the challenges of domestic wastewater pollution and management both at the national and states levels.
