Page 32 - Professorial Lecture - Prof Omoregie

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Director of Ceremonies, distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, it is customary to
end a Lecture of this nature by making suggestions to all stakeholders, which
often times almost invariably remain mere propositions with little or no room for
implementation. It is not my wish to stand before this distinguished audience to
begin to provide recommendations that may be consigned to the dustbins of
history. However, allow me to lay emphasis on this statement:

The evolution of life started within the marine environment after several billions
of years of the existence of the universe, with the water medium providing the
requisite enablers for the precursor of the very first unicellular life-forms.
Unfortunately the gradual degradation of the same marine environment as it is
today is largely due to human quests for mineral resources. This quest has
impeded the natural assimilative capacity of the environment to support other
forms of life in it.

Ecotoxicology provide environmental managers and policy makers a scientific
management tool to address the current sustainable challenges in adequately
annexing living resources from the marine environment.

Finally, Director of Ceremonies, Ladies and Gentlemen, let me add my voice to the
proposed Phosphate Mining off the Coast of Namibia, by quoting from an open
letter to the Prime Minister of Australia (dated 18 June, 2012) by SWAKOPMUND
MATTERS:

“A fishing industry and phosphate exploration can’t
co-exist. Namibians are perfectly aware of the fact
that a well-managed fishing industry represents
sustainable utilization of a renewable resource,
whereas seabed mining is highly destructive of the
entire marine ecosystem. To mix the two to
whatever extent is to court disaster on a huge scale”.

31 |