Crude Oil Spillage Wrecks Havoc In Bayelsa
Afimag.com –
Crude oil spillage on the river at the Diebu Creek Flow station in Peremabiri town, Southern Ijaw Local Government Area, Bayelsa State, has left an unknown volume of oil in the river.
According to reports, the incident happened on October 3, 2023, and it involved a pipeline under the river that was run by the international conglomerate Shell Petroleum Development Company.
Peremabiri’s locals and fishermen demanded that the environment be cleaned up immediately.
One of the thirteen communities that comprises of the Bumo clan in the Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of Bayelsa State is Peremabiri, which is situated alongside the Nun River.
The Niger Delta Basin Development Authority founded the Irrigated Rice plantation Project there in 1962, with the goal of making it the largest rice plantation in West Africa at the time.
The town which has about 16 oil wells is the location of the Diebu Creek Flow station operated by the SPDC which injects crude oil into the Trans Niger Pipeline.
The village, which is predominantly made up of farmers and fishermen, is currently suffering from an underwater oil spill that began on October 3. Large amounts of petroleum are being released into the creek and the Nun River, contaminating marshes and farmlands.
Youth President of Peremabiri, Mr. Benjamin Ibinibo and one of the affected farmers, Mrs. Yenimi Timipre said the spill at the Diebu Creek has wreaked havoc on the water and crops, urging SPDC to ensure proper clean up of the area.
The Assistant Women Leader, Favour Morgan and the Chairman of the Community Development Committee, Mr. Basil Young lamented that despite oil exploration and exploitation activities in Peremabiri since the late nineteen fifties, the town lacks basic amenities and have continued to suffer the effects of spills.
Mr. Alagoa Morris, the head of the Bayelsa office and programme manager for Environmental Rights Action, expressed regret that the international corporation has not yet contacted the local community or cleared up the leak, even weeks after it happened.
As of the time of visiting the spill site, a Joint Investigation Visit has yet to take place as stakeholders urged the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency, NOSDRA to ensure that the company embarks on proper clean up and compensation for victims.
The oil spill from its facilities in the Peremabiri community was confirmed by the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC).
A Joint Investigative Visit to the incident site was in progress to determine the reason and amount of oil leaked, according to a statement released by SPDC spokesperson Mr Michael Adande on Friday.