Director General of the Bayelsa State Directorate of Flood and Erosion Control, Chief Wilson Omuso, has disclosed plans to employ scientific methods to effectively address the recurring problem of flooding and erosion in the state.

Chief Omuso stated this when members of the Bayelsa State House of Assembly Committee on Environment, paid a courtesy visit to the Directorate to ascertain the level of preparedness towards the impending flood.

He explained that the Directorate is making proactive efforts to address the impending flood, noting that scientific mitigation methods were being considered to provide lasting solution to flooding in the state.

Chief Omuso said as part of short-term measures to mitigate effects of flooding, the Directorate has done assessment of drainages in Yenagoa and its environs and commenced de-silting, pointing out that, out of 19 drainages and canals marked out for de-silting,17 have been cleared.

The Director General, who said about 65% of work have been done on the canals, said work was still ongoing to ensure that all canals including those in newly discovered locations were cleared to their exit points for free flow of water.

He said efforts were also being made to identify higher grounds for Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps in the event of flooding as well as galvanising the support of relevant national and international agencies to address the problem of flooding in the state.

Chief Omuso urged residents to stop indiscriminate dumping of refuse and erecting structures on drainages and natural canals, appealed to the lawmakers to facilitate the enactment of enabling laws to back the Directorate with a view to addressing the challenges.

Chairman, House Committee on Environment, Mr. Living Mitin and a member of the committee, Mr. Marlon Moses, commended the efforts of the Directorate to proactively address flooding in the state, noting that, the Directorate was on the right tract and promised to work closely with it to fulfil its mandate.

The lawmakers stressed the need for the Directorate to collaborate with relevant federal and state agencies to achieve set objectives, while urging it to double its efforts as the flooding period was fast approaching.