An Environmental Rights group has condemned what it called the slow response of Shell Petroleum Development Company to the oil spill incident of July 12, 2015 at the Adibawa Oil field, operated by the company.
The Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria made the condemnation in its field report on the oil field, a copy which was made available to newsmen in Yenagoa last Saturday.
The group regretted that more than six months after the oil leak incident was reported, oil recovery was yet to be completed, exposing the environment to continued pollution by spilled crude.
The report quoted residents of the affected communities as seeking the intervention of the state and federal governments to save their environment from further degradation.
It would be recalled that SPDC had said the oil leakage from its Adibawa Well 8, located in Edagberi community of Rivers State, was caused by thieves who targeted the Well Head.
ERA/FoEN observed that the response of the SPDC had fallen below standard and therefore urged the oil firm to live up to the expectations of international best practices.
It said: “It is very sad and unfortunate that this double standards in cleaning spill impacted environment is still being applied by SPDC in the Niger Delta Region
“ERA was indeed shocked to observed the volume recovered into improvised rubber containers and what was still left un scooped or pumped out from the impacted environment.
“Surely, these items pointed to the fact that some recovery job has been on, but the extent and seriousness becomes the question.
“Tree trunks told a familiar tale; they said the truth about levels the Crude oil was elevated to during the flood as the dark marks are very visible on all plants of certain height within the impacted area.