.Appeal to FG, UN for interventions

Omon-Julius Onabu in Asaba

Two major oil producing Ijaw communities of Opuama and Polobubo (Tsekelewu) in Warri North Local Government Area of Delta State have decried the unacceptable levels of degradation of their environment due to alleged irresponsible activities of certain oil companies in the communities, demanding payment of compensations or a halt to their operations.

Specifically, the Opuama and Polobubo (Tsekelewu) have demanded a N50bn (fifty billion naira) as compensation from the Nigeria Exploration and Production Limited (NEPL) and the ELCREST for allegedly masterminding relentless oil spills and also for dumping hazardous drilling waste in Opuama Field, OML 40, while failing to carry out thenecessary clean-up of spills.

In a statement on Sunday, made available to THISDAY in Asaba, the communities lamented that despite their patience and repeated appeals for a change of their operational styles and to clean-up the area in line with global bestpractices, the oil companies have not demonstrated responsible environment justice for the communities.

The statement, signed by Mr Nehemiah Tobolayefa and Mrs Tari Gideon, for and on behalf of Save the Earth and Secure the Future (SESF), an NGO (non-governmental organisation) based in Warri, Delta State, stressed that the people of Opuama and Polobubo (Tsekelewu) have run out of patience as their people were suffering strange illnesses and avoidable deaths due to air, water and land pollution.

The statemennt said, “We recall our press statement on the Opuama flowstation oil Spill of October 28, 2023, and our first press statement a year later, on December 4, 2024, published in Vanguard and the Nation Newspapers of December, 2024. As NEPL and ELCREST refused to clean up and remediate the environment three years after the spill, we wish to issue this final press statement.

“We notify the Government of Nigeria and the International community especially the United Nations Environmental Programme office (UNEP) and the United States of America Government, of NEPL and ELCREST’s environmental genocidal activities: dumping hazardous waste and their refusal to clean-up oil spills in OML 40.

“This is a clear case of corporate failure to follow the guidelines of their operations in line with section 4(1) of the Environmental Guidelines and Standards for the Petroleum Industry in Nigeria (EGASPIN). First issued in 1992, revised edition in 2002, which provides:

‘An operator shall be responsible for the containment and recovery of any spill discovered within its operational area, whether or not its source is known. The operator shall take prompt and adequate steps to contain, remove, and dispose of the spill.’

“Despite this, the companies have refused to clean up and remediate the effect of the oil and gas spills, which the Joint Investigating Visit (JIV) confirmed to be as a result of equipment failure.”

The communities lamented that whereas oil companies played by the rules relating to hazardous oil waste clean-up elsewhere, they had turned deaf ears to the impacted communities in Delta State of Nigeria.

“It is useful to contrast the company’s approach in OML 40, Opuama, Warri North LGA, Delta state, Nigeria, to two contemporary examples of the ‘Big Oil’ responses to clean-up, remediation and compensation for oil spills: the BP/US and Total/French/EU responses to the Deepwater Horizon and Erika oil spills, respectively. These examples arguably represent international best practices in the field. It is important to note the swift admission of BP’s overall corporate responsibility, coupled with its advanced acceptance of an initial muliti-billion US dollar liability for the deepwater Horizon spills. This can be contrasted with what we are seeing with the Opuama spills three years without action.

“We want to state that the oil companies have renounced their duty of care to our people in the course of their operations leading to unavoidable deaths, and health challenges within the communities and we hold them liable for these atrocious crimes against our people.

“Again, it is worthy to mention that there have been several oil and gas spills in Opuama flowstation OML 40 without cleaning up and remediation before and after this particular spill of October 28, 2023. That NEPL has destroyed the Opuama and Tsekelewu Communities’ environment with impunity in their current drilling campaign by dumping hazardous waste on unaproved places. The NOSDRA participated in the joint investigation visits on the various spills that occurred in Opuama flowstation OML 40 but has never queried the scale of impunity of NEPL environmental pollution in OML 40.”

They called on the Minister of Petroleum, the Minister of Environment, Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), the international community especially the USA government officials, the United Nations Environmental Program office (UNEP) “to come to the rescue of the dying people of Opuama and Tsekelewu (Polobubo) communities due to incessant oil and gas spills and dumping of hazardous drilling waste without clean up and remediation at Opuama Flowstation, OML 40.”

The communitiesdeclared, “As victims of oil pollution, on account of these spills, our irreducible minimum demand:

1. Payment of N50 billion compensation;
2. Immediate clean-up and remediation of the impacted communities within three months; and,
3. Cessation of operations in OML 40 if demands are not met.

“We shall be constrained to resort to legal action to enforce compliance for the violations of rights to health, clean environment, and livelihood.

“We wish to state that the death rate of people living in OML 40 has increased due to continuous oil spills and environmental pollution from the Opuama flowstation and the hazardous dumping of drilling waste in rivers and unapproved dumping sites within OML 40 with the connivance of NOSDRA staff in charge of OML 40.

“This environmental genocide and impunity by NEPL and Elcrest Nigeria Limited must stop in OML 40.”

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