4,000 Visit Niger Delta Oil Spill Sites

Akanimo Sampson

4,000 Visit Niger Delta Oil Spill Sites

AROUND 4,000 students, researchers and concerned environmental rights activists have so far visited oil spill sites in the Niger Delta in the last five years.

Field Monitors of Environmental Rights Action (ERA), Nigeria's foremost environmental rights advocacy group, made this known to AkanimoReports in an exclusive interview in Benin City, the Edo State capital, on Friday.

Although they did not give out much details, the Executive Director of the group, Nnimmo Bassey, however, gave credence to the claim of the field monitors, pointing out that there is increased environmental consciousness in communities across the country.

According to Bassey, who is also the Chair of the Friends of the Earth International (FoEI), ''communities are standing up in defence of their environment in the Niger Delta, and there is increased international alliance on environmental issues''.

Adding, the ERA boss said, ''our reports have caused students, researchers, and activists from local and international organisations to have interest in visiting spill sites in the communities across the Niger Delta particularly in Ogoni, and Ijaw''.

Our correspondent who was in Benin City for a three-day intensive training on the relevance of environmental/human rights field monitoring and advocacy organised by ERA reports that the training attracted key management staff of the group, some legal luminaries, top media practitioners and field monitors across the country.

For Morris Alagoa, an ERA functionary in Bayelsa State, ''our field monitoring have made some appreciable impacts in the last couple of years. For instance, Shell’s replacement of old, rusty pipes that have been the cause of series of spills at JK4 [Edagberi community in 2000 onwards especially 2010], Ahoada West Local Government Area of Rivers State [about three kilometers] is an impact from our field reports and advocacy''

ERA's Director in-charge of Programmes and Administration, Dr. Godwin Ojo, says Shell has commenced a cleanup of spill sites at Ikarama community (2009/2010), ''even those spill sites that had been forgotten by community folks, including those Shell claimed to have cleaned up which our organisation exposed as not done at all, is another impact of our field monitoring efforts and relentless advocacy for change''.

Continuing, the ERA chief said Agip’s mobilisation to clamp a spill site that lasted for about two months at Kalaba community in 2009, five days after their field monitoring report and advocacy, ''is an impact of our efforts in the field''.

Some of the other impacts being played up the environmental rights group include Agip’s mobilisation to clamp a gas leak spot at Kalaba community in June,2010, a week after their reports including visiting with the press; considering the fact that the leakage had lasted about three weeks before their intervention; at Kalaba community before Agip clamped [following ERA’s intervention], the Italian oil giant also mobilized to site and clamped a gas/oil leak site at Ikarama within four days after ERA’s intervention in July 2010.

They are claiming that as a direct consequence of their field monitoring and advocacy for environmental justice, the oil companies have been inundated with calls from journalists and other stakeholders, which compel the companies to make related statements more often, like commenting on specific incidences of spills and communities.

''Following our field monitoring and campaign on gas flaring a process of ending the obnoxious practice is being discussed though the oil companies continue to buy time through delayed actions'', said Mr. Chima Williams, of the legal department of ERA, adding that field monitoring and awareness raising among policy makers has resulted in increased environmental bills at the National Assembly.

The about 50 participants at the Benin City training observed that 50 years after Nigeria’s independence, the country’s environment was still suffering from threats; and the people from human rights violations, arrest and detentions, maiming and sometimes death.

These threats to life and property, according to them, frequently have adverse effects on farmlands, farms and marine life. On a regional level, they noted that environmental degradation in the Niger Delta is playing out through oil spills, gas flaring, pollution, deforestation, illegal logging; while in the North desertification and illegal mining are common features; and in the South East various forms of erosion menace. It was also observed that unlike others ERA’s field monitoring has been participatory.

They noted that the involvement of victims and experts in identifying problems and solutions is different from having a team of experts who visit communities without taking inputs from the people concerned.

After a robust debate there was a consensus of opinion that environmental field monitoring is of high relevance to environmental human rights protection in the country. Indeed environmental monitoring should be a concern of all citizens and not field monitors alone. Participants therefore declared that monitoring is relevant in order to document the state of environmental impacts which includes the level of changes/harm to people/livelihood/the ecosystem.

They amplified the ERA mantra ‘all ecosystems are human ecosystems’. Further, they submitted that conducting field monitoring helps to provide alternative views that are authentic and mirror the reality; uncover cover up of spill and expose denial of responsibility.

The training workshop however, affirms that field monitors play the role of the environmental police or watchdogs or whistle blowers. They are relevant in raising awareness on environmental issues, advocacy and policy briefs so that government will make laws to protect the environment.

Participants acknowledged that ERA played pivotal role in the country in the field of environmental rights advocacy. Their tactics and methods do not appear to go down well with the extractive industry identified as prime offenders in the environmental despoliation of the country.

For instance, Shell had labeled ERA among those they classified as ‘busy bodies’. Undeterred environmental field monitoring and advocacy activities since the 1990s have brought increased awareness to communities and civil society groups that has led to some declarations such as the Kaiama Declaration of Ijaw Youths, as working documents for change.

Participants also noted the fact that women of the Niger Delta now express themselves on environmental/human right issues which was hitherto not so. Field monitoring and advocacy on the harmful effects of gas flaring forced government to set deadline in principle to stop gas flare in Nigeria. Today the issues have gone beyond the Niger Delta, it is global.

Our correspondent reports that as an organisation, ERA won a landmark victory in court against Shell that gas flaring is illegal and violates human rights. In addition, oil companies that fail to disclose oil spill within 24 hours of their occurrence now run foul of the law, and are liable for a fine of one million naira.

ENDS

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