LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) — Beneath an eight-lane expressway, Nigerian men stand waist-deep in a Lagos lagoon, lowering buckets of dirty water. Each load brings sand, shaping the coastline of Africa’s largest city and taking away fish and livelihoods for some of its poorest people.
Far from the bridge, wooden boats are filled with sand. Akim Sosu, 34, one of thousands of local dredgers, has been stuck in the sand for at least three years. He slips beneath the surface for about 15 seconds at a time, picking up bucket loads for construction sites.
Akeem said he and his partner earn about 12,000 naira ($8) per boatload by selling to middlemen who supply big buyers. It takes about three hours to fill the boat. Formerly a tailor, he said dredging now supports his household.
“I go out early, sometimes 5 a.m. or 6 a.m., depending on the tide,” he said.
Dredgers and local traders say the price of sand, which is important for making concrete, has steadily increased as development has picked up in Lagos. A standard 30-ton truckload of what is known as sharp sand — coarse and gritty — now sells for about 290,000 naira, or about $202, reflecting strong demand.
Changes to the lagoon that buffers the megacity of about 17 million people are unclear. What was once an open body of water has been reshaped into sandy patches, narrow channels and currents that support thousands of fishermen.
This transformation is seen near Makoko, one of the oldest fishing communities in Lagos. Dredging barges operate near houses built on stilts, while reclaimed land and construction of upland coastal properties are pressed against the banks. Residents say the encroachment has destroyed fishing grounds and put many out of work.
Nearby, fishermen wait for the day’s dredging to stop. They say that when this happens, in a short time, some fish return.
A city built on sand
Lagos, Nigeria’s economic engine, is constantly under construction. Roads, bridges and housing estates are rising daily along reclaimed waterfronts after the city’s rich displaced many of its poor.
Over the past five years, dozens of registered dredging firms and numerous informal operators have established or expanded their operations, extracting sand from rivers and coastal waters across Lagos State.
Industry analysts estimate that the city consumes tens of millions of cubic meters of sand each year, an amount equivalent to about 16,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
Lagoon sand is particularly valued by builders, producing stronger concrete than internally dredged sand.
Fishermen and environmental researchers say the cost of that demand appears to be rising on the water.
Driving the fish away
“We are not powerful,” said Bale Semede Emmanuel, a Makoko community leader. “The dredgers have spoiled all the water.”
Fishermen there say dredging has destroyed the shallow areas where fish spawn before moving to deeper waters. Sometimes, fish are sucked through the dredging pipe.
“Wherever there’s dredging going on, there’s no fish,” Emanuel said. “The sound drives them away. They’ve gone to their breeding grounds.”
As catches dwindle, fishermen say they must travel farther offshore, increasing fuel costs and the risk of rough seas. Some have stopped fishing.
Emmanuel said, ‘We have no other work except fishing. “If we don’t find fish, we’ll starve.”
Pushed through the water
For some fishermen, dredging has forced an uncomfortable shift from the sea. Joshua said on Monday that he has largely parked his two fishing boats and now works as a mechanic.
He learned how to fix boat engines as a backup years ago.
“If it wasn’t for this mechanic job, I don’t know how I would survive,” he said.
He said that due to increasing costs and decreasing catch, fishing could not be done. Fuel for a single trip can cost more than 150,000 naira ($104), he said, with no guarantee of refund.
“Sometimes you go to sea and come back with nothing,” he said. “All fuel is gone.”
Meanwhile, he said, wealthy developers and other powerful interests are reclaiming land around Lagos while fishermen are pushed away.
“The big guys are stressing us out,” Monday said. “When they come, you have no choice. You pack your things and leave.” He now lives in Sagbo-Koji, another waterfront community under pressure.
Making money from sand
Dredgers say the work provides a rare income in a city with limited opportunities.
“I’m a father of one,” said Joshua Alex, a dredging operator. “This is how I take care of myself.”
He explained how informal dredgers interact with officials and pay their “dues” to stay in business.
“Marine police come, we manage, Niva comes, we manage,” he said, referring to the National Inland Waterways Authority. He said the payment legitimizes the work.
Environmental advocates say such arrangements blur the line between legal and illegal dredging, allowing operators to resume work quickly after enforcement actions.
Government warnings, limited regulations
Lagos State officials, including Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, have repeatedly vowed to stop illegal dredging, operations blamed for flooding, erosion and other environmental degradation, especially in coastal areas.
The government said it had closed sites operating without permits and strengthened monitoring through waterfront and environmental agencies. The Lagos State Ministry of Waterfront Infrastructure Development did not respond to queries.
But community leaders say enforcement is inconsistent, pointing to payments by unofficial dredgers.
“When the government stops dredging activities today, they get paid, and then ask them to resume activities,” said Emmanuel, a Makoko community leader.
He accused them of prioritizing revenue and private development over the survival of fishing communities, citing land allocations for waterfront real estate projects.
“The government has the power, not us,” he said.
What science says
Scientific research supports fishermen’s claims about the effects of dredging in Lagos.
A peer-reviewed study conducted by Nigerian scholars along the Ajah-Addo-Bador corridor, a major dredging area east of Makoko, found water turbidity levels below national safety standards, hampering fish feeding, reproduction and migration.
The researchers also documented unstable seabeds and erosion-prone areas beneath dredging sites, and more stable conditions where dredging was absent. In some locations, groundwater samples have shown bacterial contamination linked to human waste.
Scientists have warned that dredging reduces the lake’s ability to absorb floodwaters, increasing the long-term risk to Lagos and its population. Wetlands and shallow lagoon areas act as natural buffers. When they are removed or destabilized, communities become more vulnerable.
Lagos has experienced increasingly severe flooding in recent years, with waterfront and low-lying neighborhoods the most affected.
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This story was supported by funds from the Walton Family Foundation. AP is solely responsible for all content.
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