Environmental advocates and civil society leaders issued stark warnings yesterday during a pivotal climate action workshop in Uyo, highlighting the escalating dangers from thousands of non-decommissioned oil wells scattered across the Niger Delta. These abandoned structures, relics of decades-long oil extraction, continue to leak toxic hydrocarbons, contaminate vital water sources, and imperil both human health and fragile ecosystems, experts emphasized.
The alarm was raised at the two-day “School of Ecology” workshop themed “Peoples’ Power for Climate Action,” organized by the Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF). Executive Director Dr. Nnimmo Bassey challenged Nigerian youths to spearhead demands for environmental accountability, questioning why oil majors and regulators have failed to remediate or properly decommission these hazardous sites. “The Niger Delta remains a living wound, an open testament to decades of exploitation, pollution, and abandonment by systems that value profit over people,” Bassey stated, urging immediate federal intervention to avert irreversible disasters.
The Hidden Ticking Time Bombs
Non-decommissioned oil wells—estimated at over 5,000 across the region—represent a legacy of neglect by international oil companies (IOCs) like Shell, ExxonMobil, and Chevron, who are divesting onshore assets amid declining production and rising litigation. These wells, often left with rusted casings and unplugged boreholes, facilitate uncontrolled seepage of crude oil and associated gases into soil, rivers, and groundwater. Recent Senate investigations in November revealed hundreds of such sites actively leaking pollutants, exacerbating the N300 billion annual crude theft crisis while poisoning communities.
Environmental expert Ms. Betty Abah of the Centre for Children Health Education, Orientation and Protection (CEE Hope) detailed the human toll: “Oil spills from these wells contaminate water sources, destroy aquatic life, and devastate livelihoods, particularly for women engaged in fishing and farming.” She noted that women’s physiological vulnerabilities amplify risks, including higher exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals during daily chores. Abah called for their inclusion in policy decisions, decrying the gendered dimensions of this ecological injustice.
Health and Ecological Perils Under the Spotlight
Drawing from peer-reviewed studies and on-ground assessments, workshop participants outlined a cascade of threats:
- Human Health Impacts: Exposure to benzene and other volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from leaking wells exceeds WHO guidelines by up to 900 times in drinking water, leading to respiratory ailments like asthma and bronchitis, skin irritations, reproductive disorders, and elevated cancer risks. A 2025 scoping review in Tropical Medicine & International Health linked prolonged pollution to malnutrition, HIV/AIDS spikes via socio-economic fallout, and neurological issues from heavy metals like cadmium and lead in fish and crops.
- Ecological Devastation: Mangrove forests, spanning 5,000–8,580 km² and vital for biodiversity, face acute die-offs, with spills contaminating sediments up to 17,900 mg/kg. This disrupts the Delta’s role as a carbon sink and fishery hub, supporting 30 million residents. A February 2025 University of Galway study using AI and satellite data mapped 9,000 km² of pipeline networks, pinpointing spill hotspots that have rendered farmlands infertile and fisheries unsustainable.
- Socio-Economic Ripples: Fishing yields have plummeted by 40–60% in affected areas, forcing communities into poverty and migration. Gas flaring from nearby infrastructure compounds air pollution, contributing to 10% of global flaring emissions.
These findings echo a November 2025 Senate ad-hoc committee report on crude theft, which flagged abandoned wells as environmental saboteurs, polluting communities and fueling illegal bunkering.
Pathways to Justice and Remediation
Bassey and Abah advocated for youth-led advocacy to enforce the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, which mandates vetting of divestment buyers for decommissioning capacity. They demanded:
- Accelerated cleanup under the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP), prioritizing high-risk sites.
- Stricter regulations on IOC divestments, including escrow funds for legacy liabilities.
- Community-driven monitoring via citizen science and legal action, inspired by ongoing Shell lawsuits.
The workshop, attended by over 100 youths from oil-impacted states, concluded with pledges for grassroots campaigns. As Dr. Bassey warned, “If young persons fail to drive climate action, the devastation will surprise even the most resilient among us.”
This crisis underscores the Niger Delta’s paradox: Africa’s oil heartland, yet its most polluted frontier. With divestments accelerating—Shell’s recent exit from Bayelsa assets leaving locals to bear the brunt—time is critical. Stakeholders urge President Tinubu’s administration to declare a decommissioning emergency, safeguarding the Delta’s 6,000+ species and 40 ethnic groups before another spill becomes a catastrophe.
