Understanding The GREAT WALL OF Lagos | Eko Atlantic 2021
The Great Wall of Lagos was built to protect Victoria Island's and the early phases of
Lekki's shoreline from coastal erosion. Prior to the construction of The Great Wall, the
Atlantic Ocean's waves regularly flooded Victoria Island and the early phases of Lekki, posing
a threat to countless lives and businesses. The Great Wall of Lagos, which will eventually
stretch to 8.5 kilometers in length, has already accomplished its primary objective of protecting
Victoria Island from coastal erosion. Once completed, the wall will also protect Lekki's
early phases from coastal erosion. To comprehend the Great Wall of Lagos, we must begin at
the beginning of the Eko Atlantic City story. So sit back, subscribe and turn on your notifications
for we’re about to take a deep dive into the Atlantic coastline of Africa’s most
vibrant city Lagos Nigeria.
DISCLAIMER VIDEO
This video contains material gotten from the official Eko Atlantic website and is meant
for educational purposes.
THE HISTORY OF COASTAL EROSION ALONG THE WEST AFRICAN COAST
Since the beginning of the last century, records have indicated that sand and sedimentary materials
along the coast of the region of West Africa have been transported from West to East by
ocean currents. This process of transportation is known as a littoral drift.
Examples of littoral drift disruptions have included the construction of dams, large port
developments, and other disruptions to the coast such as shipwrecks. In these cases,
large amounts of sand were deposited in some locations, and significant erosion occurred
in other locations. In Lagos, the creation of the rock moles at
the entrance to the Port of Lagos initiated the interruption to the littoral drift. Until
the existing Port in Lagos was completed, large ships needed to anchor offshore because
the Commodore Channel was shallow. To ensure that cargo destined for Lagos Port is brought
to the Port, a fleet of smaller vessels is sent to the larger vessels anchored offshore
to transfer the cargo into the Port, a laborious and very inefficient process There was an
obvious and long-overdue upgrade to the Port of Lagos, which would aid in the growth of
trade and the economy.
The engineers at the Port of Lagos used the Moles East and West to make access to the
port better. The two moles that were constructed for the dredging of the Commodore Channel
allowed for the dredging of the Port of Lagos, making it possible for larger vessels to dock
in the Port of Lagos. The moles were built in 1905 and finished
in 1912, allowing larger trade ships to enter and exit the Port of Lagos freely, increasing
the volume of trade through this vital new trade hub.
However, the moles had to be built to allow for littoral drift. On the West side of the
Port of Lagos, the beach sediment that had previously been deposited in Victoria Island
and Lekki was now trapped.
Once the erosive power of the sea was unleashed to the east of the Commodore Channel, i.e.
the Bar Beach and the coastline of the Lekki Peninsula, there was significant erosion of
the coastline. More than 100 years after the construction of the moles, the entirety of
Bar Beach, which runs alongside it, had eroded away leaving the Island of Victoria directly
exposed to violent ocean surges. Tens of thousands of businesses, residents and properties on
Victoria Island and Lekki were now under severe threat.
Urgent action was required to avert an ecological disaster and the potential loss of the busy
commercial hub of Lagos Victoria Island. THE EROSION OF BAR BEACH CIRCA 2005: VICTORIA
ISLAND UNDER THREAT Lagos' coastal city of Victoria Island was
on the verge of being inundated by a surge of ocean water that would have originated
in the Atlantic Ocean. After the shoreline was eroded away at Bar Beach, the coast road,
Ahmadu Bello Way, fell into the ocean. Substantial flooding resulted in the abandonment
of nearby businesses and homes. Victoria Island residents' lives and livelihoods had been
put in danger. It became increasingly clear that millions and millions of square meters
of developed land was about to be lost to the ocean if nothing was done soon.
Lagos, Nigeria's most important financial center, was in danger.
SO WHAT WERE THE ECONOMIC COST IMPLICATIONS TO THIS SITUATION
With Victoria Island serving as one of the city's central business districts, the state
faced not only the loss of valuable land used by thousands daily but also the loss of revenue
from this bustling district, which would have had a catastrophic effect on the city's economy.
It is estimated that if Victoria Island had been inundated by coastal erosion, approximately
466 billion Naira in annual rental revenue would have been lost. This figure does not
include the Gross Domestic Product generated by the businesses and residents on Victoria
Island. Finally, if the onslaught of ocean surges
continued, Victoria Island would have sunk into the Atlantic Ocean. Without Victoria
Island's protection, the rest of Lagos' densely populated areas, including Ikoyi, Lagos Island,
and all of the other communities along the Lagos Lagoon, would now bear the brunt of
the relentless ocean surges.
Some action had to be taken.
A SUSTAINABLE SOLUTION FOR THE ONGOING EROSION Governor Bola Ahmed Tinubu, recognizing the
critical need for action, called for solutions. South Energyx Nigeria Limited, the city planners
and designers of Eko Atlantic City, collaborated with marine engineers Royal Haskoning to develop
the project and presented it to the Lagos State Government for consideration as a cost-free
solution to the problem of coastal erosion. South Energyx and Royal Haskoning's sustainable
solution called for reclaiming land lost to 100 years of coastal erosion and erecting
a sea revetment to permanently protect Victoria Island from the Atlantic Ocean's onslaught.
The design and testing of a sea wall capable of withstanding the worst storms in 1,000
years took place at the Danish Hydraulic Institute in Copenhagen.
In July 2006, the Lagos State Government and South Energyx Nigeria Ltd. signed a Concession
Agreement.
The Great Wall of Lagos could begin construction.
THE DESIGN OF THE GREAT WALL OF LAGOS IN-DEPTH: The Great Wall of Lagos is a large sea revetment
that protects the new city and Victoria Island from flooding. Royal Haskoning Marine Engineers
from Holland designed the Wall, bringing over 100 years of experience in urban planning
and development. Royal Haskoning designed a wall that would adequately protect the city
from the Atlantic. Royal Haskoning then took the design to the
Danish Hydraulic Institute, who built a full-scale model of the wall for Eko Atlantic City. The
sea wall experienced the worst waves in a 1,000-year cycle. The finished sea wall model
passed all of the tests with flying colors.
Testing for the 8.5 km long sea wall ended in early 2009, and construction began in mid-2009.
Today, you can see the daily progress on the Ahmadu Bello Highway. It has now completed
over 6.5 kilometers of sea wall and continues to grow.
“We are doing everything possible to ensure the highest levels of safety and sustainability
at Eko Atlantic,” says Ronald Chagoury Jr, Vice Chairman of South Energyx Nigeria Limited,
a Chagoury Group subsidiary. A large sea revetment being built to the highest standard of marine
engineering available today is one of the measures. To achieve this result, we worked
with an international team of coastal and marine engineers and conducted physical scale
model tests and computer simulations in Denmark. The project would start once the Lagos State
Government and South Energyx Nigeria Limited signed the Concession Agreement. Eko Atlantic
started reclaiming land and building the sea revetment. With the help of South Energyx
Nigeria Limited, Governors Tinubu, Fashola, and now Ambode have turned a liability into
an asset.
THE DRAINAGE SYSTEM
Building the drainage network in Eko Atlantic City is a precise task which is repeated numerous
times throughout the project. To begin, concrete pipes are fabricated in the pipe factory located
in Eko Atlantic City. Storm water drainage pipes in the pipe factory vary in size from
30cm in diameter to the largest being 150cm in diameter. When the pipes come out from
their mould they are left to cure for 3 weeks to allow the pipes to achieve full design
strength. Why EKO ATLANTIC CITY'S DRAINAGE NETWORK is
Unique The technology and methods used to design
and install Eko Atlantic City's stormwater drainage network are best practices worldwide.
The stormwater drainage system in Eko Atlantic City is completely underground. There are
no open drains in the City. Having an underground drainage system prevents trash from being
dumped into the drainage system and then into the canal. Plastic waste is notorious for
clogging drainage systems and interrupting water flow. An underground drainage system
also helps prevent mosquito breeding grounds. From a design standpoint, underground drainage
allows for sidewalks to be built above the drainage area. Because they are not working
in the road, maintenance workers can safely access drains. Also, drainage maintenance
does not obstruct traffic flow. Finally, by building and installing its own
drainage pipes, Eko Atlantic City can ensure quality control and standards for both production
and installation. The proximity of pipe production to installation reduces delivery time and
reduces the frequency of broken pipes during transportation.
EKO ATLANTIC CITY HAS Started Construction ON LAGOS'S GREAT WALL
Eko Atlantic City began physical construction in 2008. The vision is to create a new city
unlike any other on a vast expanse of land reclaimed from the ocean along the coast of
Lagos, Nigeria's Victoria Island. By mid-2009, the first rocks for The Great
Wall of Lagos had been laid, and construction of the sea wall's core had begun.
Dropping the rocks into the ocean to form the Sea Wall's base was not sufficient; excavators
had to shape and form the rocks. This process was made possible by the fact that all excavators
used during the construction process are equipped with a pinpoint accurate GPS system. This
GPS system enabled excavators to operate precisely underwater, resulting in a finished product
that met all design specifications. After being delivered and formed, the rocks
begin to take shape both below and above the water's surface. It is now time to begin construction
of the Sea wall's primary armor section: a series of interlocking, x-shaped concrete
blocks called accropodes. Each accropode is constructed entirely of
reinforced concrete and weighs a total of 5 tons. Eventually, 100,000 accropodes will
be placed in a predefined grid, with over 50,000 already placed using a GPS system for
pinpoint accuracy. Additionally, samples of the concrete used to construct each batch
of accropodes are sent to an independent laboratory for analysis to ensure the concrete reaches
the proper strength level. As the final step toward completing the Lagos
Great Wall, an 8.5-kilometer-long, 12.5-meter-wide promenade will be constructed on top of the
Great Wall. This promenade will provide an abundance of recreational space for residents
looking to enjoy the oceanfront open space and breathtaking ocean views.
Throughout this process, the designers of The Great Wall of Lagos remain on-site daily
to monitor the progress of the sea wall's construction and to ensure that the quality
of the work meets design standards. There is nothing left to chance.
As the Wall continued to expand, Victoria Island began to see the benefits of the works
taking place two kilometers offshore. The ocean surges that had previously struck Victoria
Island had now reached The Great Wall of Lagos.
AT WHAT STAGE IS THE PROJECT OF THE GREAT WALL OF LAGOS TODAY AND EKO ATLANTIC AS A
WHOLE? Lagos is already benefiting from the Great
Wall of Lagos. Roads that were previously impassable are now motorable. Previously abandoned
properties have been redeveloped and reinvested in. Kuramo Waters, which had collapsed and
exposed tower foundations to ocean currents, is now once again safe for development.
Businesses and residents alike have returned to Victoria Island and the surrounding areas,
secure in the knowledge that the once-dire threat of ocean surges into the city has been
eliminated. Numerous developments and projects have sprouted
up since the construction of The Great Wall of Lagos began, demonstrating the wall's positive
impact on not only Eko Atlantic City but also Lagos as a whole. Eko Atlantic has reclaimed
land lost to over 100 years of coastal erosion on Victoria Island and, soon, the early phases
of Lekki. The Great Wall of Lagos has reached a total
length of 6.5 kilometers, short of the planned 8.5 kilometers.
Eko Atlantic City as a whole has also made significant strides. Over 6,500,000 square
meters of land have been recovered to date. The city's independent utilities are already
in place. Among these services are a road network, an underground stormwater drainage
system, a canal network, water, and sewage treatment, and a fiber optic and telecommunications
network. Numerous tower developments have been completed
and others are currently under construction throughout the city. Additionally, the city
is already populated by residents and office tenants.
We couldn’t discuss this project without talking about its downsides as it is usually
our opportunity to put our voice out there in unison to those who have had doubts and
concerns which need to be cleared. We’ve even had some people comment on our video
made earlier about this project saying it’s a waste of money and it’s just another step
of hypocrisy by the Nigerian government. We don’t know how true that is but we’ll
appreciate if you leave your thoughts in the comment section below!
Downsides of the Eko Atlantic Project
Local residents living nearby have criticized the Eko Atlantic project, claiming that ongoing
construction has resulted in coastal erosion and ocean surges; as ocean water surges through
living areas, flooding access roads, and destroying electricity poles, forcing residents to relocate.
Additionally, the Lagos State Government has been chastised for failing to engage the public
in the project.
In August 2012, the Atlantic Ocean surged and overflowed its banks, sweeping 16 people
into the sea, killing several, and flooding Kuramo Beach, Victoria Island, and surrounding
areas. According to an environmental expert, "the ocean surge occurred as a result of the
contractors responsible for the proposed Atlantic Ocean City's sand filling activities failing
to implement measures that would mitigate the effect of the surge on the environment."
Our Conclusion
Eko Atlantic City and The Great Wall of Lagos are providing a tremendous amount of benefits
to both Victoria Island and Lagos as a whole. The city will continue to grow and complete
its goal of providing a unique new city with modern and efficient independent infrastructure
facilities. Thanks for watching! Be sure to check out
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