A crude oil spill has been reported in Ogale, Eleme Local Government Area of Rivers State, coinciding with the establishment of the Federal University of Environmental Technology, Ogoni, by President Bola Tinubu.
SaharaReporters learnt that the oil spill was reported on Monday evening and blamed on suspected equipment failure from the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) of Nigeria.
Meanwhile, the bill for the environmental university had been sponsored by Senator Barinaadaa Mpigi and passed by the National Assembly before receiving presidential assent.
Members of the Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre’s (YEAC-Nigeria) in a statement signed by Dr. Fyneface Dumnamene Fyneface Executive Director, YEAC-Nigeria said, “One Million Youth Volunteers Network of Human Rights Defenders and Promoters in the Niger Delta” alerted the organisation to the spill at the Ogale Manifold.
The leaked crude allegedly filled underground pits before spreading to the pipeline right of way near Lot-1 of the Ogoni cleanup project under the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP).
The volunteers blamed the spill on suspected equipment failure at the manifold owned by Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) of Nigeria. They claimed it occurred while contractors were carrying out maintenance work.
“The volunteers reported and decried the associated violence and application of force by the Eleme Youth President, Mr. Walter Olaka during his by invading the spill site with alleged armed boys, confiscating trucks that were being used to evacuate the spilled crude oil, beating up some of the drivers whose trucks were already seized and parked at the Eleme Council Secretariat and injuring some persons in the process including Mr. Gift Gongogo Nene who was allegedly daggered on the head by some of the boys reported to have invaded the scene with dangerous small arms and light weapons including guns.”
The Advocacy Centre, through its Crude Oil Spill Alert System (COSAS), called for a police investigation to restore peace.
“In a statement in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, signed by its Executive Director, Dr. Fyneface Dumnamene Fyneface, the Advocacy Centre called on the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) to carry out a joint investigation visit (JIV) on the spill site, invoke sections of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), 2021 and ensure that containment and clean-up are done with adequate compensation paid to those whose economic crops are impacted by the spill in the area.”
The spill has drawn attention to ongoing environmental challenges in the region, despite efforts to address oil pollution through government initiatives.
Follow the Sahara Reporters channel on WhatsApp: