ENVIRONMENT Bayelsa advocates stringent laws against oil pollution

The Bayelsa State government has advocated stringent environmental laws for the protection and preservation of the environment against crude oil pollution and other activities occasioned by oil exploration and exploitation activities in the Niger Delta.

Governor Seriake Dickson made the assertion when members of the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency, (NOSDRA), led by its chairman, Major Lancelot Anyanya (rtd), paid him a courtesy visit in Government House, Yenagoa.

Dickson, who said that his administration would soon organise an environmental summit to discuss ways of mitigating the effects of oil and gas exploration and exploitation in the region, expressed his administration’s commitment to collaborate with NOSDRA to facilitate the speedy passage of the amended Act of the agency, which has undergone its first and second readings at the National Assembly.

He emphasised the need for international oil companies operating in the Niger Delta to protect the environment, and decried the way and manner the environment was being abused with “reckless abandon.’’

On the request by NOSDRA for a functional office in the state, Governor Dickson called for the siting of the headquarters of the agency in Bayelsa, saying the state is host to the bulk of oil and gas operations in the Niger Delta.

“I have said it before what has been going on in Bayelsa State, the Niger Delta and in all oil producing areas concerning the levity with which oil companies treat the issues of the environment and the maintenance of environmental and health standards.

“When you look at all of these and particularly listening to your chilly statistics, which I believe is only a tip of the iceberg, one is really left with no other conclusion than that, we are actually facing a case of environmental terrorism,” he said.

In his remarks, Chairman of NOSDRA, Major Lancelot Anyanya (rtd), explained that the visit was aimed at strengthening the existing collaboration between government and the agency on efforts at curbing oil spills and its attendant effects.

Also contributing, the Director -General of NOSDRA, Dr. Peter Idabor, advocated the amendment of relevant laws to alleviate the suffering of oil bearing communities.

According him, research findings indicate that the rate of oil spill in Bayelsa, is more devastating than that of Ogoni in Rivers State, which has been widely reported, adding that the state records about 40 spill cases in a month.