Chizoba: Soil Fertility – Paradigm shift through collective action

A summary of the following article:

Soil Fertility – Paradigm shift through collective action

Author: Dr. André Bationo, Director, AGRA West Africa & Senior Programme Officer, Soil Health Program (Research & Extension)

Date: 25/09/2009

Introduction 
 Studies of land degradation have proven that the sub-Saharan countries have the highest rate of nutrient exhaustion. This is the basic cause of the decrease in per capita food production in Africa. In developed countries, environmental contamination is caused by over application of fertilizers. While in sub-Saharan countries, environmental contamination is as a result of insufficient nutrients application, poor soil management, harsh climatic conditions etc. Studies of fertilizer now show that there is a decrease in fertilizer use in Africa because of low returns due to agro-climatic conditions and current farming methods and because of the lack of information about fertilizers by farmers, retailers and agents. High costs of fertilizers due to foreign production, large units, and costly transport and inconsistent and adverse policy environment such as shifting government and donor subsidy policies usually undermine private investment.

Paradigm Shifts in Soil Fertility Management
A lot of African soil is derived from granite through millennia of weathering. Soils have low response when fertilizer is applied alone. During the 1960s and 1970s, there was the first paradigm shift. This involved the use of external inputs, be it fertilizers, lime, or irrigation water. It was seen as better for crop production. This method worked effectively in Asia and Latin America. However, in the sub Saharan countries it was less effective because of diversity of the agro-ecologies and cropping systems, variability in fertility, weak institutional arrangements, and lack of enabling policy etc In the 1980s, organic resources were believed to enable sustainable agricultural production. This brought about the second paradigm involving soil fertility management.
Lessons from Long-Term Experiments Large-scale farmers in Kenya, Zambia and Zimbabwe who have been able to sustain high cereal yields recognized the positive crop yield when fertilizer is being added. However, if mineral fertilizer is added alone, yields may decline. For better and sustained crop production, and combined addition of organic inputs and mineral fertilizer is needed.

Way forward
To move forward, Investment is a vital part in ensuring higher yields. It is also important for both public and private systems to empower farmers. Transportation costs are high, domestic production is low and there are few dealers. Country specific strategies can be used to help. There should be support for private firms, as well as subsidies to encourage production. This would lower production costs, provide services to make them venture out. Countries like Malawi, Nigeria, and Afghanistan have proved that this method is successful.

Global Initiatives on Soil Fertility in Africa
In order for Africa to achieve its Green revolution, soil fertility issues have to be thoroughly looked into. Between 1996 and 2001, several steps and plans were made towards soil fertility improvement. Every individual has a part to play towards this. However, collective responsibility is vital.

Sharon: Desertification in Nigeria

Summary of:

“A powerful article by Lanre Oyetade on the human causes and effects of desertification, featured in The Tribun." 

Desertification in Nigeria

Desertification is the process of land degradation in arid, semi-arid and dry sub—humid areas resulting from various factors, including climatic variations (drought) and human activities (overexploitation of drylands). Until the recent years, the world's great deserts were formed by natural processes interacting over long intervals of time. During most of these times, deserts have grown and shrunk independent of human activities which is totally different from the way deserts are formed now.

The northern part of Nigeria is currently experiencing drastic desert encroachment, 10 northern states of the country lose 600 meters of land each year as the desert advances southwards while the whole country loses about 350,000 hectares of arable land to desertification. As far as it dates back, desertification has no good effect on the environment; it encroaches and takes up arable land.

“There isn’t enough rain and we have to dig deeper and deeper to find water,” these are words of a farmer in the northern part of Nigeria which in the late 1990s could yield about 40 bags of sorghum and 20 of groundnuts each year, but his bountiful yield has gone as desertification takes over the lands. Even though he now works twice as hard as before, his yield is barely half of what he used to have in the past.

·      What could be the cause of such calamity, how can a land that could yield so many crops be void of nutrient and water that even half of its former yield cannot be reached with so much work?

This is a typical example of a desert, although I couldn’t get the exact location, it is in one of the northern countries of Nigeria, which used to be an arable land but a desert now.

Bare rocks and a pill of sand: Explains the work of wind on bare land, it sweeps across the soil, carrying with it light particles and depositing them in a different location, leaving the land bare and extremely dry for use.

Causes of Desertification

·       Overgrazing

·       Farming on average land

·       Destruction of plants in dry region

·       Incorrect irrigation in arid regions

Effects of desertification

·       Soil becomes less usable

·       Vegetation becomes lacked or damaged

·       Causes famine

·       Food loss

·       People near are affected

Below is a picture of an abandoned village, its habitants had to leave in search of greener pastures and thus the empty village.

Questions to consider:

---    How can the problem of desertification be curbed?

  -What possible role can the government play in extinction of desertification?

  - Is it possible for desertification to be totally wiped out?

Water, Water, Everywhere...

A new semester, new class, and a revitalization of the blog.  This time around the blog will operate a bit differently and will be more diverse.  Last semester we focused on the Niger Delta, this time we will present various current events.  I will open up with an initial current event.  Students will follow up weekly with their current event that is relevant to material that we are covering in class.  So here it goes!  Enjoy...

Water, Water everywhere...

  The topic of the week in class is essentially water, concentrating on the water cycle (in detail) and how humans interact with the liquid of life at each of the process.  The article that I found deals with water scarcity and quality, which ultimately leads to disease and suffering around the world and in Nigeria.  

The original article appeared in This Day on 24 March 2010, and is titled Nigeria: Unsafe Water/Poor Sanitation - Silent, Global, Local Killiers written by: Abimbola Akosile.

  The article essentially looked at the topic of sanitary water globally and locally and was inspired by World Water Day, which had been observed two days earlier. 

  Early on in the article we are presented with a scenario:

"For a moment, imagine a village in Nigeria without any decent toilet facility or good potable water. Imagine each inhabitant looking for personal corners, pathways or bushes to 'drop' their human waste, which incidentally is prime fertiliser.

Imagine a resultant fly-infested community, where open water sources and faecal heaps serve as egg-banks for maggots and diseases. Imagine thirsty individuals drinking the same water and using it for household chores, thereby importing diarrhea and other killer diseases into unwary homes. Imagine the absence of sanitary inspectors or regulatory guidelines for proper water usage or sanitation practices. Then imagine the result."

  The article states that this scenario, realistically, is not too far fetched.  With the absence of sanitary facilities apparent throughout the country, despite promises for the construction of necessary facilities by the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.  The reality is that diarrhea kills at least 10 children everyday in Nigeria (according to the article).  The origins of these diarrhea outbreaks are overwhelmingly the result of poor water sanitation.  

  Other stats that the article brings to light in its section titled "Fearful Stats" are just as worrisome.  According to the UN half of all girls who leave primary school do so because of lack of safe private toilets, contaminated water, and bad hygiene practices.  Furthermore, the article states, "WHO-UNICEF reports that 42 percent of the population in Nigeria has no access to improved drinking water, which accounts for 20 percent of those without access in Africa as a whole."

  The article quotes UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon saying, “These deaths are an affront to our common humanity, and undermine the efforts of many countries to achieve their development potential.”  This quote is followed by his concern for dwindling water resources, which will likely become even scarcer with the coming of global climate change.

  Local action was also represented in the article, which highlighted such organizations as WaterAid Nigeria, End Water Poverty, the Water Supply & Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC), Global Call to Action Against Poverty (G-CAP), and Municipal Youth Vanguard.  Each of these organizations are involved in the fight against waterborne illnesses.  Together, along with some other groups they organized the world's longest toilet queue. The effort was performed on World Water Day and was expected to highlight the lack of safe water for many in the world.  

The World's Longest Toilet Queue in Abuja, Nigeria

  The article presents some frightening stats and really does not provide much hope for the future.  Yes, various NGOs ang governmental organizations are working recognize and are making some efforts to solve this problem, but the outlook is bleak.  Recently in Nigeria in several locales there were Cholera outbreaks, which claimed lives.  A drive through any town will reveal appalling water sanitation conditions without having to search for them.  I am not surprised by many of the stats and I feel the stats about Nigeria are likely, but what is worse is that it occurs in a country that has the resources (at least financially) to really tackle this problem.  I have to refer back to Ban Ki-moon's quote, "These deaths are an affront to our common humanity, and undermine the efforts of many countries to achieve their development potential."

Niger Delta: Oil spills in perspective (Faridah Kasimu)

Environmental activists from across the world including Nigeria, Ecuador and Burma were prevented by Chevron from entering the shareholders meeting despite having legal shareholding proxies. Below activist Niger Delta Emem Okon spoke to Democracy Now! on the actions of Chevron and other oil companies operating in Nigeria – Shell, Mobil, Elf and Agip.       

            One point she raised in respect of the BP oil spill was the comparison between the news media’s reports and public outcry in the US and the relative lack of both in Nigeria where oil spills have been taking place for the past 50 years. For example the Exxon Valdez in 1989 spilled an estimated 10.8 million US gallons (40.9 million litres, or 250,000 barrels) of crude oil. Compare this with oil spills in the Delta…Up to 1.5 million tons of oil, 50 times the pollution unleashed in the Exxon Valdez tanker disaster, has been split in the ecologically precious Niger Delta over the past 50 years, it was revealed yesterday.

A panel of independent experts who travelled to the increasingly tense and lawless region said damage to the fragile mangrove forests over the past 50 years was tantamount to a catastrophic oil spill occurring every 12 months in what is one of the world’s most important ecosystems.

As well as threatening rare species including primates, fish, turtles and birds, the pollution is destroying the livelihoods of many of the 20 million people living there, damaging crops and fuelling the upsurge in violence, it was claimed.

Last year alone Shell admitted to spilling 14,000 tones of oil. However the oil companies in Nigeria have consistently blamed oil spills on poor farmers and fisher men and women and more recently on militants. Whilst this may be the true in a small number of cases a great deal of spills are due first to pipes which are old and rusted and irregularly maintained; and secondly the fact that the many pipelines run overground in front of built up areas even in front of peoples homes and are therefore more vulnerable to accidental damage. Their denial of responsibility also ignores why the pipelines are located in highly built up areas and near to fishing ponds / creeks and farmlands.

Oil spills are only part of the story. There is also the environmental and health impact of 50 years of gas flaring and again the oil companies have repeatedly denied any of the health claims by local communities. Common sense would tell anyone who has seen a gas flare pit [gas flares burn either on the ground in pits or in the sky] with red hot flames spewing black spoke, dust and grit that this must be a health hazard to anyone living or working nearby. Note the date to end gas flaring has been constantly delayed

            I believe that if one positive thing comes out of the massive personal and environmental assault that is taking place in the Gulf – let it be a wake up call for all of us in this oil dependent world and a call to action to stop the criminal and exploitative actions of transnational oil companies.

Gas Flaring in the Niger Delta (Chukwudumebi)

Apart from the oil spills on the Niger delta lands, the oil and gas burnt off into the atmosphere by oil companies like Shell, ExxonMobil and Elf cause local air pollution and contribute to climate change. The article says “More gas is flared in Nigeria than anywhere else in the world – in western Europe 99 per cent of associated gas is used or re-injected into the ground.” Why is this different in Nigeria? Is it because the laws and policies in Nigeria are not being implemented properly? If these oil companies have better ways of reducing the pollution, why are they not doing the right thing? The flares contain toxins such as benzene that can cause respiratory problems such as asthma and bronchitis. I really don’t know who is to be blamed more; the government or these oil companies but we can’t keep pointing fingers at each other. We all have to work together as a country to reduce the pollution in our atmosphere.
Referencehttp://www.platformlondon.org/carbonweb/showitem.asp?article=113&parent=73&link=Y&gp=3

Environmental Destruction and Human Rights in the Niger Delta (Ugochukwu)

   David-Campbell.org

 The Nigerian Delta states are blessed with rich resources in natural oil and gas. A blessing that can sometimes turn into a curse, especially when looking at the oil extractions in the Niger Delta from a human rights perspective. The Niger Delta region has a rich and diverse flora and fauna: there are vast mangrove forests and a wide variety of animals that are specifically native to the particular ecosystem prevalent in that area. The oil in the region is being extracted, mostly by international companies, by way of drilling, a technique involving unavoidable oil spills and uncontrolled gas flaring.

          This alone, however, could be manageable, since there are guidelines that the international oil extracting companies operating in Nigeria have to observe. The Environmental Guidelines and Standards for the Petroleum Industry in Nigeria (EGASPIN), describe the rules to keep environmental pollution down to a minimum while extracting oil. However, in the past there have been several cases involving international corporations that did not observe those rules strictly enough, and situations in which environmental pollution was not cleaned up at all by the waste producer. Amnesty International describes several examples in which international corporations have left oil spills unattended for weeks, even after the local population had made several complaints in that regard. The fact that natural gas, a by-product of oil extraction, is still currently being burnt by the oil companies, which again causes air pollution, is only one of the problems. When it comes to the consequences of oil extractions on the environment of the Niger Delta, several human rights are being violated. First of all, the right to health and a healthy environment, which is stated in the International Covenant of Social, Economic and Cultural Rights, in the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Because the oil makes its way into the water system of the Delta, drinking water becomes polluted and fish die. This obviously has negative implications for the local population of the Delta, which mainly live off fishery and farming. Moreover, because of the environmental pollution caused by the oil drillings and the fact that oil companies are moving into the lands of the native population, who, in most cases have no legal means to withhold them from doing so, the right to an adequate standard of living, including the right to food and water, are also severely endangered.

           However, it is clear that the fruits of the natural resources and the consequent development can be fully enjoyed only if environmental pollution and resulting human rights abuses and corruption come to a halt. To reach this end, stronger international cooperation and monitoring is needed so that the “abundant human and natural resources” in the Niger Delta will finally have “an impact on poverty” and on human rights.. As UNDP rightly puts it, “rigorous enforcement of environmental laws and standards” is crucial. Moreover, all the relevant legislation in respect of human rights is there, it only has to be properly enforced. With enforcement fully in place, we can restore the Niger Delta to its former glorious beauty and once again see water lilies and fresh untainted water bodies as seen in the picture above.

References: (1) This article is based on a paper written for the Yale University Press by Alan Bacarese  

                          and Anja Roth in December 2009

Let the Oil companies speak! (Adaora)

Photograph by Rhys Thom

As a citizen of Nigeria, I have always heard about oil spills and the various effects it has on the environment but it has never been on the news unless people died or there was an explosion. I decided to do some research on the topic and I found a lot of pictures on this oil spill. The effect are numerous; pollution of the environment, loss of farmlands and rivers for fishing, loss of aquatic animals and so on. When you think about all this, you realize that the voices of the oil companies are never heard concerning these issues. I thought to myself; is it that these companies do not care at all? Or is it that they are doing something and are not being recognized for it? I have searched through the internet for what these oil companies have done or are doing to help and I have found very little. I decided to focus on Shell as they discovered oil in Nigeria in 1956.
Shell accepted the blame for the oil spill in 2007 where 13,900 tons of oil was lost. They said they were able to recover 10,000 tons. They blamed the rest of the oil spills on militants and local farmers and fishermen. Yes, militants have destroyed some pipelines but it is nothing compared to what the oil companies themselves have spilt. I mean, you go to a place that has not drilled oil in four years and yet there is a film of oil over their rivers and streams. This is as a result of old and rusty pipelines that have been there for over 40 years now and also because the pipelines run overground even in front of people’s homes making it susceptible to accidental damage. Let me not get carried away. To be honest, militants have attacked some oil pipelines and kidnapped some petroleum workers and fought government troops. This doesn’t mean that they should be blamed for all the spills considering that oil spills have been happening since oil was discovered. Since Shell’s last oil spill in 2008 the amount of oil spilled has quadrupled according to their last environmental report. They blamed an explosion in Iriama in November for this drastic increase. A spokesman for NNPC says that Shell is involved in serious clean-up exercises. Shell's chief executive, Peter Voser, said: “Nigeria, especially the Niger Delta, remains a very challenging place in which to operate. Security issues and sabotage are constant threats to our people, assets and the environment. But we are cautiously optimistic that conditions there are improving.” These oil spills actually affect Shell negatively even though we might not see it. They had about 51 of their employees kidnapped for ransom in 2009 and now their Chief Executive, Peter Voser says that Shell can no longer depend on Nigeria for growing profits. Shell has tried to improve their image in Nigeria since their lawsuit in 1997 concerning the death of Ken Saro-Wiwa. They have tried to clean-up some oil spills but claim to be have been stopped by locals from getting near the pipelines.
Shell keeps blaming militants for their oil spills but that does not change the fact that the locals in the affected communities are suffering and in dire need of assistance in order to survive. I know we can not entirely blame oil companies for the spill, but they have to take responsibility for the oil pills. I know it is cheaper for them to let the spills pass by and settle out of court but they should think of all the lives and properties that are lost. These people in the Niger Delta may be ignorant but they do not deserve to suffer like this. Some of these companies claim that the communities prefer settlements to clean-ups but they should realize that Nigerians are corrupt and love money. They should consider the environment that is lost and clean-up these oil spills. The oil companies should also change their old pipes and bury their pipelines deeper underground so that people including the militants would not have easy access to it.
It is difficult to know whose story to believe, but I think we(oil companies and the people) should work together to reduce these oil spills and make the Niger Delta into the lush and productive region it is supposed to be.
Refer to http://www.blacklooks.org/2010/05/niger-delta-oil-spills-in-perspective/ for more information.

Where's the Media? (Amina)

No wonder many Nigerians do not know or do not care what goes on in the Niger Delta region. I strongly believe that this is because the Nigerian media seems to be careless on the whole environmental issue. On every Nigerian newspaper, news website or magazine, there are sections on lifestyle, property, glamour, business, health etc. But there isn't an environment section in almost all of them. You hardly see an environment related headline even in the popular newspapers. The Nigerian media should really change their attitude towards the enviornment. 

          During every incident of oil spill on the Niger Delta, so many issues arose, like who is responsible, how and why it happens and so on. Well, if the oil companies and the communities will or will not answer those questions, at least the environment should be cleaned up. These people, or more like the environment, suffer from disastrous land, water and air pollution. The oil companies are not doing their best and the people do not know the right ways to clean up oil spills. See attached article for more information.

 Blog_Article_NES201_.docx

Right to Health (Zainab)

 

 Niger delta is one of the 10th most important wetlands and marine ecosystem in the world, with a population of 31 million people. it is naturally blessed with abundant oil (crude) which is the mainstay of Nigeria's economy. this particular area is seriously affecting the lives of people and also the natural environment. full attention is needed from the government to stop this devastating problem. According to a new Amnesty international report, ''the oil industry in Niger Delta has brought impoverishment, conflict, human right abuses and despair to the majority of the people in the oil producing areas''. this is absolutely true, no doubt about it. The right to health, healthy environment and good standard of living has been violated by the oil industries. unfortunately, Nigerian government is failing to hold the oil companies to account for the pollution they have caused.
  More than 60% of the people depend on the natural environment for their livelihood. yet, pollution by the industries are destroying the vital resources on which the depend.The water they drink, cook, wash, bath, the fish they eat, the air they breath and the environment they live are all contaminated by oil and other toxins. these people are normal people like everyone, they deserve to live a happy life as everyone does.
  The United Nation Development program (UNDP) also describe the region as suffering from ''administrative neglect, crumbling social infrastructures and services, high unemployment, social deprivation, abject poverty, filth and squalor, and endemic conflict''. With this comment, I strongly believe that this is the perfect time for the Nigerian government to show some actions because seriously, some VOICES need to be HEARD. 

Flaring Gas...Nigerian Government Says No! (Aishatu)

                        Photo via City of Refuge Africa

Contrary to general opinion, the Government has actually been trying to do something about the problem in the Niger Delta. One of the solutions offered by the the Nigerian Senate is that they have sponsored a gas flaring prohibition and punishment bill, the PETROLEUM INDUSTRY BILL. Basically, the bill states that by December 2010, any company that flares gas would be asked to pay the cost of gas at the prevailing market rate at that time, among other penalties. The bill will also allow any third party that wants to make use of the flared gas to collect it. This will go a long way in reducing the number of pollutants in the atmosphere, and consequently Global Warming, in the Niger delta and the nation at large. I found an article online further explaining the bill. Please, find attached.

Pointing an accusing finger…Who do we blame? (Valentine)

                                  http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7519302.stm

The numerous incidents of oil spills in the Niger Delta are a serious problem that has and is still tormenting many Nigerians. The plight of farmers, fishermen and the other residents who live in such oil polluted areas is so enormous, but ‘little or no’ remedy has been offered to ameliorate their conditions. As more and more oil spill cases are encountered, every involved party to such an ordeal tries to lay the blame on the other party. But who then is to be blamed? Is it the locals, the oil companies, the Nigerian government, or who…?

The oil companies (e.g Shell, Chevron and Exxon Mobil) blame the locals of sabotaging and vandalizing the oil pipelines, which then causes the spillage. Such a claim was recently backed by a Shell spokesman in The observer newspaper article of May 30^th, 2010. According to the spokesman, "We had 132 spills last year, as against 175 on average. Safety valves were vandalised; one pipe had 300 illegal taps. We found five explosive devices on one. Sometimes communities do not give us access to clean up the pollution because they can make more money from compensation." Such claims are been contradicted by the locals who on their part, blame the oil companies as well as the Nigerian government for allowing such situations to persist. From the same newspaper article (URL link above), a member of the Ogoni people responded by stating that the blame should fall on the oil companies and government who don’t give attention to the plights of the masses. He said, "If this Gulf accident had happened in Nigeria, neither the government nor the company would have paid much attention."

Who do we blame for these cases of oil spills in the country? Government, locals, or the oil companies or …? As I write this post, I can’t help but question; do we really have to point accusing fingers on anyone? I remember the words of Catherine Pulsifer: “Fix the problem, not the blame.” Nigeria is a great nation and we the citizens should be UNITED as one and try to find improved solutions to these oil spill problems. It is only when we stop the blaming that a possible solution can arise.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/may/30/oil-spills-nigeria-niger-delta-shell

Spills in Nigeria (Seun)

 Everyone blames shell for the oil spills in the Niger Delta, people have ignored the other things that could be causing these oil spills. Shell will not leave oil spills unattended for as long as they are on purpose because this is costing them a lot of money. For 5 years more than 70% of oil spills have been caused by vandalism of pipelines by militants. The UN released information about this in June 2010 stating that vandalism plays a large role in the environmental pollution of Niger Delta.
      By 2009 98%  by volume of oil spills in SPDC sites were caused by vandals, while 2% was shells fault. This proves shell should not be blamed for everything as militants play their role in the environmental pollution of the Niger Delta. Shell is willing to clean up the oil spills before they get out of hand but they are stopped by community members looking for large compensations or clean up contracts. Shell should not be blamed for all the damage done to the people and the land of the Niger Delta, instead the militants vandalizing pipe lines, and stealing fuel from shell pipes should be dealt with. If this is the rate of oil spills and environmental degradation will go down, shell can be blamed for any environmental pollution that happens then.
link: http://www.shell.com/home/content/environment_society/society/nigeria/spills/

Nigeria's agony!

A ruptured pipeline burns in a Lagos suburb after an explosion in 2008 which killed at least 100 people. Photograph: George Esiri/Reuter


I wanted to share and discuss an article that was shared in class, which actually began our talking on the subject of the Niger Delta.  The title of the article:  Nigeria's agony dwarfs the Gulf oil spill. The US and Europe ignore it written by John Vidal of The Observer.  Now this article was interesting in many regards.  First it began to put into perspective how dire the situation in the Niger Delta region really is, especially when put into perspective with the recent Deepwater Horizon incident or with the Exxon Valdez tanker spill.  We had some good discussion on that topic, but what struck me was the fact that most of the class consisting of all Nigerians were actually more informed about the Deepwater Horizon spill than what was going on in their own backyards.  The article states that, "the US and Europe ignore it," but it should add that most of Nigeria ignores it as well.  This was perhaps the spark that lead us to start this blog, because the US and Europe will do little until Nigeria recognizes the problem...all of Nigeria.  
  Now the article cites examples of blatant disregard for the environment and for the people living near petroleum operations, but as is often the case it could be regarded as quite one-sided.  If you click the link and read the article you can scroll down and read some of the comments people have posted, many of them critical of the article, which to me makes this much more interesting.  
  One of the common points that comes up, and is also mentioned by Shell in its media center, is the fact that the Nigerian government receives a large portion of the petroleum revenues and also operates facilities under the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation.  I agree with many that this is an important fact, and of course should be disclosed as it is informative.  I further agree with the critics of this article that NNPC is just as culpable as the private petroleum companies.  However, I don't believe this changes the overall impact of the story, and I don't think it absolves companies such as Shell from their part in the environmental degradation of the delta region.  Of course NNPC should be mentioned along with Shell, Agip, etc..., but let us not lose site of the big picture, oil is destroying environments and livelihoods...those signed onto the Joint Operating Agreement are all responsible.  
  Another point that commonly comes up is the fact that there is vandalism of pipelines and that violent acts prevent maintenance and repair of infrastructure as well as clean-up of oil spills.  Now I recognize that these are facts and this does occur, but let us be honest.  I won't go into accounts of reported oil spills being ignored for unacceptable amounts of time, the aging infrastructure, and inadequate spill responses.  Nor will I go into the accounts of illegal taps, vandalism, and communities not cooperating.  The back and forth of these issues seem to pass blame but lose site of overall picture.  I'll frame this picture with a question, "How is any of this allowed to happen?"  I am sure the answer is complex, but some concepts may be simple.  How can so many illegal taps be put in place?  You would suspect that after so many thefts, actions would be taken to prevent them, both on the producer side and by government.  I would also like to know (and of course I will do some more investigating) how the age of the Nigerian infrastructure compares to similar facilities worldwide.  
  Now I'll end on a point that has also been raised.  These companies are in the Niger Delta to make money, which would make neglect of pipelines and the installation of taps counterintuitive, so much of these problems must be exaggerated...right?  I find the logic of the question fine, but the only answer I can come up with is that they are still making plenty of money despite having many spills and operating with outdated infrastructure.  The costs of dealing with infrastructure and vandalism prevention are simply outweighed by the benefits of not doing so!  
  There are many more issues, but I will end on this note.  I find it disingenuous that the oil producers (including NNPC) bemoan the costs of dealing with vandalism and with providing funds for community development.  The fact remains that they must still be making a pretty penny (or kobo) despite these costs along with the costs to their reputations globally.  


From Shell's Website:


"SPDC agrees that, in the past, not enough oil revenue has been returned to the oil producing areas for developmental purposes. SPDC and other Shell companies in Nigeria pay tax and royalties each year into the federal budget. The government then decides how to spend and distribute this money among the states. The division of revenues is the subject of intense political discussion. SPDC has made its views known and contributed to debates aimed at improving governance of the allocation of oil revenue to oil-producing communities, which includes the Ogonis. Shell initiated and was a leading sponsor of the Nigerian Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative, which openly publishes payments made to the government by the energy industry and the allocation of money to states by the federal government."


What do you think regarding the above statement?

Opening Post

Photo: http://tirian.org/?p=39

This blog has been started as part of a class in natural and environmental sciences at the American University of Nigeria. The purpose of this blog is to explore environmental issues facing Nigerians and to encourage discussion concerning these topics. It is our hope that through this blog we can reach out to fellow Nigerians and the world in a call to action to protect our environment. Our focus will start with the Niger Delta and the problems facing this region. As a class we recognize that despite worldwide awareness of this problem many Nigerians are either unaware our indifferent over the issue. Our goal is to change that and through the process remain open minded and adamant that we adhere to civil discourse. More to come....