Nigeria faces escalating environmental challenges that threaten ecosystems, public health, and climate stability. Despite various policy efforts, environmental degradation persists, driven largely by unsustainable energy use and sectoral activities. This study examines the long-run impacts of sectoral activities (agriculture, industry, and services) and energy use on environmental degradation in Nigeria, using secondary data from credible sources.

Fully Modified Ordinary Least Squares (FMOLS) and Canonical Cointegrating Regression (CCR) techniques were employed to estimate long-run relationships. The results found that agricultural output significantly worsens environmental conditions, with a 1% increase associated with a 0.076% rise in carbon emissions and a 0.63% increase in ecological footprint. Conversely, the service sector helped mitigate environmental degradation, reducing CO2 emissions by 0.068% and ecological footprint by 0.26% per 1% increase in output.

Energy use is the most critical driver, with a 1% increase resulting in a 0.975% rise in carbon emissions and a 0.20% increase in ecological footprint. Industrial output showed no statistically significant environmental impact. The study concluded that sectoral activities and energy use are central to Nigeria's environmental degradation and recommended promoting sustainable agriculture, diversifying the energy mix, and adopting green technologies to address these challenges.