Omodele Eletta, professor at the Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Ilorin, has discovered the use of eggshell, coconut shell, sawdust and croaker fish scales for the prevention of environmental pollution.

In a lecture titled “Bad yet good: Rummaging and Combatting for Future Water and Land Security”, Ms Eletta also listed pawpaw leaf, coconut shell and cocoa pod, among agricultural wastes that could be used to combat environmental pollution.

According to the don, the exploitation of agro-waste could achieve both a strategy for waste minimisation and a sustainable production of energy and chemicals.

The expert warned that environmental pollution was an unfavourable alteration of the environment, adding that it was a global problem and Nigeria has its fair share due to the lack of strict monitoring of people’s activities.

According to Ms Eletta, every farm activity, however, low leaves some wastes in the environment and these wastes end up in various sectors of the earth.

Ms Eletta explained that different agricultural wastes have been optimised for the use of wastewater treatment prior to discharge to the environment.

She observed that eggshell has beneficiation and thermal treatment, as it could be used as absorbent for the removal of heavy metal from the solution, and also as a bio-resource in a number of formulations.