By ERIC MOORE
THE Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre (YEAC-Nigeria) has demanded immediate clean up and payment of adequate compensation to the people of Ebubu in Eleme local government area of Rivers State, as massive crude oil spills were being reported from the facility of Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC) in the area.
Pentoks News gathered that, on Monday, October 21, 2024, a spill occurred on Shell’s pipeline rights-of-way in Ejamah, Ebubu Community, directly opposite the Naval Headquarters, while SPDC was conducting maintenance activities.
Reports said the excavator operator, while excavating the soil to expose the pipeline for maintenance, mistakenly punctured one of the underground pipes, causing a massive oil spill.
Members of YEAC-Nigeria’s One Million Youth Volunteers Network of Human Rights Defenders and Promoters in the Niger Delta in the community sent videos, photographs, texts, WhatsApp and voice messages to Advocacy Centre, urging the organisation to use its Crude Oil Spill Alert System (COSAS) to alert the authorities and the general public to come to their aid by holding Shell accountable for the incident that has violated their environmental rights among others.
According to the eyewitnesses’ reports, when the incident occurred, Shell promptly instructed the excavator to dig a pit, approximately 12 by 12 feet in size and depth, to contain the leaking crude and prevent its spread around the area.
However, the crude quickly overflowed the pit, prompting the excavator to excavate a second pit that was also overflowing with crude.
According to YEAC-Nigeria, the company then ordered the shutdown of the line to potentially halt the spill, which persisted until the following day due to the high pressure of the transported crude.
The report also stated that in order to enhance the spill damage control process and curb the spread of crude oil into the environment, the company dispatched approximately four vacuum trucks to the site to extract and remove the crude oil, thereby reducing the overflow into the environment.
In a statement that its Executive Director, Fyneface Dumnamene Fyneface, signed and made available to journalists in Port Harcourt on Friday, October 25, YEAC-Nigeria raised the alarm over the spill, demanding for immediate clean-up and compensation for the people of Ejamah, Ebubu.
The community wants the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) to assist with a Joint Investigation Visit (JIV) to the site.
They also want the government to hold SPDC responsible for the spill by using the right parts of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), 2021.
The community demands immediate environmental clean-up and repair, as well as adequate compensation from SPDC for the environmental and economic damages inflicted in the affected area.