CONTAINING THE AITEO OIL SPILLS
The authorities must hasten their effort to stop the flow
Following the uncontrollable flow of oil that is fanning from a blowout in the facility of Santa Barbara Well 1 of Aiteo Eastern Exploration and Production Company, operator of the NNPC/AITEO Joint Venture on OML 29, several communities in Niger Delta are now at serious risk. The cause of the blowout which started on 5th November is still being investigated but preliminary reports indicate equipment failure while officials of the company have not been able to contain the flow because of the high pressure believed to be lifethreatening. This same high pressure is the reason a committee the federal government set up to investigate the spew and cap the wellhead has been unable to access the site. The inaccessibility of the wellhead location is reportedly due to the hydrocarbon fumes that have saturated the atmosphere in the area.
As things stand, it is imperative for the federal government to step in, beyond stopping Aiteo from continuing their work, which cannot continue anyway. There is an urgent need to invite experts from around the world that are familiar with this type of hazardous situation to help cap the wellhead and contain the spill. The Joint Investigation Team (JIT) comprising the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA), Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Bayelsa State Ministry of Environment, community representatives and Aiteo should consider the long-term impact of this tragic incident.
Already, the oil spill has polluted the rivers and lakes in the communities, gravely affecting lives and livelihoods of the people. Sources of fresh water for drinking and cooking are contaminated. For many of the communities in Bayelsa and Rivers States, the situation is dire with a technical expert engaged by Ijaws in the Diaspora stating that “after 15-20 days of continuous flow, the spill has already released a minimum of 150,000 – 200,000 barrels of toxic hydrocarbons into the sensitive mangrove ecosystem and possibly twice that much. Even by international standards, this constitutes a major hydrocarbon spill, and its impacts are likely to be serious, extensive and long lasting.”
There is already an emergency. People in the affected communities need immediate assistance to enable them cope in their polluted environment. Experts have described the spill as a major disaster that threatens ecologically sensitive wetlands, killing fish, shrimps, and other marine lives, as well as birds. But more disturbing is that of the livelihood of the people threatened as their main stay, which is commercial fishing will have to be put on hold for a long time. It is even said that the situation may cause displacement of some people, unless properly handled.
NOSDRA has already instructed Aiteo to guarantee the future of its operations in the area by carrying out concrete actions to address the situation, which will include clean-up of impacted areas, remediation of spill site, as well as post-spill impact damage assessment. Aiteo says it is closely monitoring all activities related to the affected communities, viz. feeding, lighting, hygiene, drinking water and medical requirements with the help of local associations while also regularly monitoring the quality of air to ascertain the livability of the affected areas.
However, before a clean-up of the immediate and extended areas impacted by the blowout, the pressing challenge is to stop the flow. It is also important to learn useful lessons that would ensure we do not have this sort of tragedy again. The responsibility for that rests with not only Aiteo but all the oil companies operating in the Niger Delta.
EXPERTS HAVE DESCRIBED THE SPILL AS A MAJOR DISASTER THAT THREATENS ECOLOGICALLY SENSITIVE WETLANDS, KILLING FISH, SHRIMPS, AND OTHER MARINE LIVES, AS WELL AS BIRDS