Across the globe, environmental watchdogs and agencies are tightening their grip on pollution and waste management, but recent events have exposed both progress and persistent gaps in enforcement. From the industrial corridors of Ogun State, Nigeria, to schools in Pakistan’s Punjab province and the embattled rivers of England, the struggle to protect communities and ecosystems from pollution is playing out under the watchful eyes of regulators, campaigners, and citizens alike.
On September 25, 2025, the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) of Nigeria issued a stern warning to recycling facilities operating in the Ogijo Community of Ogun State. According to reporting by Business Recorder, NESREA threatened to revoke the operational licences of any recycling operations refusing to comply with established remediation protocols. This comes after a sweeping clampdown in the region’s battery recycling sector, where nine facilities were sealed for a litany of violations: poor slag management, manual battery breaking, uncontrolled lead dust emissions, and a lack of proper health surveillance for workers.
Prof. Innocent Barikor, NESREA’s Director General, did not mince words during a tense meeting with facility operators whose businesses had been shuttered. “The enforcement action was taken as a necessary first step to safeguard lives and restore environmental integrity. Facilities will remain sealed until verifiable corrective actions are taken,” he declared. Emphasizing that the current situation was “anarchic and not sustainable,” Prof. Barikor urged operators to seize this opportunity to reset their practices, demonstrate responsibility, and bring their operations into full compliance. “NESREA has shown patience in the past, but that window is closing,” he warned.
Barikor further directed that operators must commit to addressing facility-specific environmental and operational concerns, comply with penalties for indiscriminate dumping and non-compliance, and take tangible steps toward adopting cleaner technologies. The message was clear: the era of lax oversight is ending, and those unwilling to adapt risk losing their right to operate.
The meeting also featured Lawal Babatunde, Director of Hazardous Materials Management and Environmental Safety for the Ogun State Environmental Protection Agency (OGEPA), who directly accused the facilities of flouting state guidelines for the evacuation of slag from the community. The executive secretary of the Alliance for Responsible Battery Recycling (ARBR), Mrs. Miranda Amachree, joined other sector representatives in the discussions, underscoring the broad coalition now mobilizing to enforce compliance and protect public health.
While Nigeria’s NESREA is ramping up enforcement, a very different story is unfolding in England. Internal documents leaked to BBC News reveal that the Environment Agency (EA), the body responsible for policing pollution incidents across England, has been struggling to respond effectively to serious environmental threats. In 2024, the EA failed to attend nearly a third of almost 100 serious water industry pollution incidents—despite internal policy stating that staff should be present at all potentially serious events. Even more troubling, the agency downgraded the environmental impact of over 1,000 incidents initially deemed potentially serious, often without any on-site investigation.
The EA’s reliance on updates from water companies—sometimes the very entities responsible for the pollution—has drawn sharp criticism from environmental campaigners. An EA insider told the BBC, “What not attending means is that you are basically only dealing with water company evidence. And it’s very rare that their own evidence is very damning.”
Among the troubling examples cited were a chemical spill that killed all the fish in a reservoir and a sewage spill that persisted for more than 24 hours, neither of which prompted a physical response from the agency. The data show that the EA attended only 13% of all pollution incidents, both serious and limited, reported in 2024—a figure that has alarmed activists and the public alike.
Campaigners like Ashley Smith of Windrush Against Sewage Pollution (WASP) and Matt Staniek, a water quality advocate in the Lake District, have voiced their frustration. Smith remarked, “It’s virtually impossible to get them to come out,” describing a scenario in which the EA frequently defers to water companies for follow-up. Staniek added, “The Environment Agency has not been holding United Utilities accountable. And the only way that we get them to properly turn up to pollution incidents and now actually try and do a proper investigation is by going to the media with it, and that should not be the case.”
There is widespread agreement that the current system is broken. As part of a government review of water industry regulation, plans are underway to end the controversial practice of self-reporting by water companies and to merge regulatory bodies—including the EA—into a single, more robust authority. James Wallace, chief executive of River Action, summed up the frustration: “The Environment Agency is so hollowed out that it cannot investigate pollution crimes, effectively telling polluters they can act with impunity.”
In response, the EA has announced it will recruit 500 additional staff and aims to more than double the number of water company inspections in the coming year. An agency spokesperson told the BBC, “We respond to every water pollution incident report we receive. To make sure we protect people and the environment, we are careful not to underestimate the seriousness of an incident report when it comes in. Final incident categorisations may change when further information comes to light. This is all part of our standard working practice.”
Meanwhile, in Pakistan’s Punjab province, a proactive approach is taking shape within the education sector. On September 25, 2025, the Punjab Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a sweeping mandate: all educational institutions must install five-color waste segregation bins by September 30, 2025, as part of a broader effort to prevent pollution and promote sustainable development. The new system requires yellow bins for paper, green for glass, khaki for organic waste, red for metal, and orange for plastic. Failure to comply could result in fines of up to Rs500,000 and daily penalties of Rs1,000 starting October 1, 2025, when EPA field officers will begin inspections.
EPA Director General Imran Hamid Sheikh’s directive also bans outdated waste disposal methods in schools, colleges, and private institutions. The agency’s vision extends beyond compliance: institutions that fully adhere to the regulations will be designated as ‘Smart Waste Certified’ and must display a certificate at their main entrance. The Punjab Waste Management Helpline will support institutions with regular garbage collection and environmental education, ensuring that both students and teachers are engaged in building a culture of sustainability.
“In addition to waste segregation, educational institutions are required to educate both students and teachers about the importance of environmental awareness. Only those institutions that fully adhere to these regulations will be designated as ‘Smart Waste Certified’,” the EPA stated. The initiative aims to reduce environmental pollution, increase recycling rates, and make valuable resources reusable—a model that, if successful, could inspire similar efforts worldwide.
These developments, from Nigeria’s industrial clampdown to England’s regulatory reckoning and Pakistan’s educational reforms, reflect the complex, evolving nature of environmental governance. As agencies confront both internal challenges and external pressures, the world is watching to see whether these efforts will translate into cleaner air, safer water, and healthier communities for all.
