Environmental experts have picked holes in the ongoing Ogoni clean-up exercise, as they called for more commitment and seriousness from all the stakeholders.
Speaking to The Tide on the Ogoni clean-up exercise following the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Report of 2011, the experts suggested the need for the implementing agencies, especially the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) to change tactics by demonstrating seriousness in the exercise.
Former National President of the Nigeria Environmental Society (NES), Engr Ola Andah said the setback being witnessed in carrying out the environmental remediation was due to failure to understand the enormity of the report and what it entails.
In his words, “We have allowed ourselves to be swayed by sentiments and opinions that do not have professional inclination”.
Andah, who is from Eleme Local Government Area and one of the impacted areas, recalled that he and other stakeholders had raised alarm in 2002 when oil started seeping into drinking water sources in Ogale, a community in Eleme.
He regretted that failure to act at that time had worsened the situation, as water sources were contaminated.
“We did not wait till UNEP told us that underground water in Ogoni, Eleme and Okrika areas was highly contaminated”.
The failure to act at that time, the environmental expert averred led to the deterioration of the situation and sparked fresh agitations.
He, however, regretted that after six years of the UNEP Report, the Ogoni clean-up effort had been going on at a slow pace.
“By now, we should have been verifying the health status and environment of the affected communities”.
Andah called on HYPREP managers to change tactics by improving communication and networking in the various communities, since the exercise was highly technical and requires expertise.
“There should be more interface with communities,” he said, adding, “Communication should be devoid of politics. And the communities should set up committees to interface with HYPREP”.
The former NES president also counselled HYPREP to engage experts and locals so that the people will have a sense of belonging in the process and help drive it.
On his part, Professor of Environmental Biology and Conservation in the Rivers State University (RSU), Prof Godfrey Akani opined that the Ogoni clean-up exercise was facing challenges because the communities were not fully involved.
“The youth should be engaged, if the clean-up must succeed. In anything they are doing with locals, if they don’t want to fail, they must pacify them and involve them”, Akani warned.
Akani explained that looking at the vast area of Ogoni land and the time the pollution has taken, it will be difficult to clean-up.
“I will advise HYPREP to adopt the “Biodiversity Action Plan” by mitigating effects of other factors”, Akani said.
“The action plan should be able to engage the youth, men, women and children of the various communities by empowering them in trades and skills.”
According to the Professor of Conservation, when the people are given another source of livelihood, it will pave way for the remediation process to go smoothly since the locals survive from the environment.
The university don also called on the federal authorities to engage the state government in the process.
“The state Ministry of Environment should be a major stakeholder. They will provide security and guide experts who will be engaged. Without these, the report will be hard to implement”, he said.