Don Says Engineering Geologists Vital to Stop Building Collapse, Bad Roads

Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan

A professor of Environmental and Engineering Geology at the University of Ibadan, Ibrahim Oyediran, yesterday, said engineering geologists are vital to prevent building collapse and mitigate the environmental impact of construction activities in Nigeria.

This was as he lamented that Nigeria as a country has gotten to a stage where it cannot continue to pay lip service to the vital role played by Engineering Geologists in the delivery of sustainable structures.

He stated this yesterday while delivering a valedictory lecture in honour of Prof. Gabriel Oladapo Adeyemi, who retired from the service of the University of Ibadan after clocking 70 years.

Oyediran, who spoke on the topic, “Engineering Geology and the Sustainability of Structures and the Environment: The Edunabon Manuscripts,” noted that Nigerian roads keep failing and buildings continue to collapse because the country refuses to consider the environment in the placement of structures.

“Our roads keep failing, our buildings keep coming down, and we refuse to consider the environment in the emplacement of structures. We design beautiful structures without recourse to material suitability, bearing capacity, environmental impact, and sustainability.

“We have no value for human life and place more premium on quantity rather than quality. How do we walk and move forward when we have refused to crawl and take care of the basics,” he said.

While noting that not all buildings collapse due to material quality, Oyediran noted that by ensuring that geological conditions and processes are fully considered, Engineering Geology helps to create structures that are safe, durable, resource-efficient, and environmentally responsible, contributing to the well-being, progress of society and a sustainable built environment.

He maintained that engineering geology was indispensable, and its importance cannot be overstated in the realm of civil engineering and infrastructure development.

He added that Engineering Geologists are crucial at every stage of infrastructure development because they offer a unique perspective to help build resilience to natural hazards, and solve environmental problems caused by human activities, stating that they lower the cost and risk of building and infrastructure construction because of their knowledge, skills, and understanding of the interfaces between science and engineering and the natural and built environments past, present, and future.

According to him, “Engineering Geology promotes the delivery of Infrastructure that is resilient to natural hazards, reducing the risk of catastrophic and structural failure due to geological events, enhancing their sustainability by preventing premature failure and reducing maintenance needs thereby enhancing public safety.

“This proactive approach not only saves lives but also reduces economic losses by preventing infrastructure failures.”