Editing Onitsha (section)

== Geography ==

Onitsha lies on the eastern flank of a major east–west crossing point of the [[Niger River]] across from the [[Asaba|city of Asaba, Delta]] and occupies the northernmost point of the river regularly navigable by large vessels. It is the western terminus of the central ''Anambra hills''. These factors have historically and in modern-day made Onitsha into major trading center between the coastal regions and the north, as well as between eastern and western Nigeria. Onitsha possesses one of the very few road bridge crossings of the mile-wide Niger River<ref>{{cite news |title=The second Niger Bridge |newspaper=The Daily Sun |date=2007-02-20 |url=http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/opinion/editorial/2007/feb/20/editorial-20-02-2007-001.htm |access-date=2007-04-06}}</ref><ref name=britannica>{{cite web |title=Britannica |url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/429251/Onitsha |access-date=2008-10-02}}</ref> and plans are in place to add a [[Second Niger bridge|second bridge]] southwards of the existing one.

Rapid urbanization in recent years although promoting the economy, negatively affects natural vegetation and local landscape.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Nwaogu|first1=Chukwudi|last2=Okeke|first2=Onyedikachi J.|last3=Fadipe|first3=Olusola O.|last4=Bashiru|first4=Kehinde A.|last5=Pechanec|first5=Vilém|date=2017|title=Is Nigeria losing its natural vegetation and landscape? Assessing the land use-landcover change trajectories and effects in Onitsha using remote sensing and GIS|journal=Open Geosciences|volume=9|issue=1|pages=707–718|doi=10.1515/geo-2017-0053|bibcode=2017OGeo....9...53N|doi-access=free}}</ref> the region is also considerably erosion prone