From INIOBONG SUNDAY, Uyo
Peace Point Development Foundation, PPDF, a Civil Society Organisation, CSO, working to promote ecological justice in Nigeria has raised alarm over the devastating impact of oil spill in the coastal communities of Eastern Obolo Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State.
The PPDF Coordinator, Comrade Umo Isuah-Ikoh, told journalists in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital on Tuesday, that their findings revealed that the spills emanated from Sterling Oil Exploration and Energy Production Company Limited’s, SOEPCL, facility, and charged the firm to commence immediate clean up and other remediation programmes.
He listed Emere-Oke and Akpabom as the communities worse hit by the spills and urged the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency, NOSDRA, to investigate the incident, as the aquatic ecosystem has become toxic, throwing several fishermen out of jobs.
He said: “Sterling Oil with an operational base in Eastern Obolo, Akwa Ibom State is operating a marginal field within OML 13 oil and gas asset.
“After our on-the-spot visit to the communities affected by the spill at Emere-Oke and Akpabom communities, we are calling on Sterling Oil to immediately stop the spill, clean up the mangroves of the affected communities and the Atlantic Ocean which the spill has flowed into.
“After receiving information from the affected communities that an oil spill has been going on in Eastern Obolo for months now due to oil exploration and production activities by Sterling Oil, we visited the communities and saw that a large part of the mangrove at Akpabom community has been devastated by oil.
“At Emere-Oke community, we also saw where the oil spilled from Durga 4 oil rig into the Atlantic Ocean. This is an unacceptable development as the aquatic environment will be deeply polluted.
“As reported by the community that this situation has been going on for months, we are deeply concerned that no action has been taken to address the spills. We are worried over the impact this will have on aquatic lives and the environment,” Isuah-Ikoh stated.
He recalled that Sterling Oil was a few months ago, accused by the state government of violating the terms of land grants and unlawful encroachment beyond its legally assigned portion in Eastern Obolo and surrounding communities, and wondered why the firm should continue to violate and pollute the environment without imbibing best practices in the oil exploration and exploitation business.
“The company now allows oil spill to go on within its host communities unabated. We are calling on Sterling Oil to immediately stop the spill, clean up the environment and compensate the communities over the destruction of their environment.
“We are calling on NOSDRA to investigate the spills and level of destruction caused so as to take action in accordance with their mandate. We are appealing to the state government to be more sensitive and concerned over the operations of companies within the state through effective monitoring of their operations.”
