A fresh oil spill has been reported in Kpean Community, Ken-Khana District of Khana Local Government Area in Rivers State, further complicating the ongoing environmental remediation efforts in Ogoniland.
The Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre (YEAC-Nigeria) confirmed the incident through its One Million Youth Volunteers Network and Crude Oil Spill Alert System (COSAS).
The spill reportedly occurred on Wednesday, August 6, and is suspected to be caused by equipment failure at a wellhead.
Although YEAC-Nigeria could not independently verify the exact well involved, conflicting accounts from local traditional leaders suggest the spill originated from either Oil Well 2 or Oil Well 4 within the Oil Mining Lease (OML) 11 oil field, which houses 16 abandoned wells.
These wells have been dormant since 1993, following Shell Petroleum Development Company’s (SPDC) exit from Ogoniland after the company was declared persona non grata by the Ogoni people.
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According to YEAC-Nigeria volunteers in the community, unusual pressure sounds had been coming from the wellhead in the days leading up to the spill. This suggests a possible failure of the sealed Christmas Tree (wellhead) despite maintenance work carried out by SPDC in 2011, during which several oil wells in the area were reportedly “killed” or shut down.
The development raises fresh concerns amid the ongoing environmental remediation being carried out by the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP). It also comes at a time when the federal government is engaged in sensitive discussions about resuming oil production in Ogoniland — a move that has stirred controversy among stakeholders.
YEAC-Nigeria has called on the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) to carry out a Joint Investigation Visit (JIV) to the site in order to ascertain the exact cause and extent of the spill.
One Response
There was a compromise somewhere. Make una check well well. No cover up