- Gas flare in flow station operated by Agip
- Residents live in fear of losing their homes
- Drinking water polluted
The residents of Ogboinbiri in the Bayelsa state have lamented the continuous gas flaring from the flow station operated by the Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC). Complaints of over-bearing heat, building affected and even pollution of water.
The oil-rich region of the Niger-Delta has for a long time suffered from continuous gas flaring, oil spills, and environmental degradation from petroleum products development. While all levels of government have benefited from revenue accrued from crude oil sales, the region and its residents continue to suffer the environmental effects of crude oil development.
“If you are in faraway Amassoma at night, you can see the shade of the flare. The noise is like a roaring lion. Our building roofs and the entire earth vibrate at the same time. All neighbouring communities around are brightened when this occurs”, one resident said. “The community is so hot, facing extreme heat. All our roofs are damaged. Our source of drinking water, which is rain, is polluted”, another resident said.
The Bayelsa Head, Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN), Comrade Alagoa Morris has decried the increase in environmental degradation in the state. He said, “With all the resources taken daily from the community by Agip and NNPC Joint Venture and 13 per cent derivation accruing monthly to Bayelsa State, it is unthinkable that such a community is denied potable water and affordable health facility. And, this is alienation by the government and unjust”.