1.89 million barrels of oil spilled in the Niger Delta in 20 years - Group

 The United States Alumni Engagement Innovation Team has said that 1.89 million barrels of oil spilled in the Niger Delta between 1976 and 1996.

The group, which is working on the use of a local plant to remediate oil spills, said the figure was part of the 2.4 million barrels spilled in the country during the period.

The group also said that more than 4,835 reported incidents of oil spills occurred in the country during the period.

The figures are contained in a communiqué issued in Port Harcourt on Wednesday after the team’s workshop.

The communique, jointly signed by the group’s Chairperson, Prof. Stella Williams, and the Team Leader, Dr Morufat Balogun, was presented at a sensitisation workshop entitled “Kenaf clean up: Countering oil spills in the Niger Delta with local plants.”

It said the largest spill occurred was the Bonga spill, which spilled 40,000 barrels of crude in 923 square kilometres in the Atlantic Ocean in 2011.

The commuinique says that Kenaf, a local plant, predominantly grown and called rama in the northern parts of the country, was a safe and environmental-friendly alternative to cleaning oil spills.

According to the report, Kenaf is an environment-friendly way of cleaning oil spills compared to oil-dispersants which can threaten marine and human lives because of their toxicity.

The report called on the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) to adopt the plant as part of a sustainable community-integrated strategy for oil spill remediation.

It encouraged a pro-active engagement of oil companies in sponsoring the adoption and utilisation of Kenaf in local entrepreneurship and farm activities beyond oil spill remediation.

It also said the plant could be used to produce bricks, sound proofing systems, automotive components, green building and thermal insulations.

The communique called for the establishment of an oil spill response group that would partner the Kenaf Team at the community level and register the team into a limited liability company.

It suggested that the Kenaf Team be supported to do a pilot study of the project in the Niger Delta with support from NOSDRA and the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC).

It called for the review of environment and  public health laws as well as the Land Use Act, saying that the existing laws could affect the use of Kenaf in cleaning oil spill in the country.
It urged the government and the National Assembly to ensure strict implementation of the recommendations.