The Rivers State Deputy Governor, Dr. Ipalibo Harry Banigo, has solicited the support of the Community Development Committees (CDC) in the 23 local government areas of the state to enlighten and sensitize their people about the dangers inherent in artisanal refining of crude oil.
Banigo expressed this during a consultative meeting on modular refineries with the CDC chairmen and secretaries from the 23 local government areas at the Delta Hotels, Port Harcourt, last Friday.
She said the appeal became necessary in view of the fact that the issue of black soot concerns everybody because of the negative effect it has on our environment, noting that it is a matter that could kill all of us if we do not take necessary actions to stop it.
According to the deputy governor, when scientists examined the particles of the soot in Port Harcourt and its environs, they discovered that those particles were very dangerous to human health, plants and animals.
Banigo further disclosed that it can cause cancer and damage virtually all the organs of the body like the lungs, heart, the kidneys and the skin, stressing that one of the major causes of soot was artisanal refining of crude oil which is popularly known as “Kpo Fire”.
The deputy governor informed the CDC members that the state government under the leadership of Governor Nyesom Wike was committed to put an end to the problem by providing better alternative to the people in the form of modular refineries.
She assured them that government would not victimize anyone who abandons his or her artisanal refining business to embrace the modular refinery programme.
In his remarks, the state Commissioner for Environment, Dr. Igbiks Tamuno, revealed that in Rivers State, with a population of over seven million people, the “Kpo fire” activities were spread across 14 local government areas with some LGAs having as much as 10 locations.
Igbiks, who said the effects of the soot were seen everywhere, expressed worry that while some artisanal refinery operators smile to the banks, majority of the innocent people were suffering from the illegal activities of a few, stressing that the state government was determined to put an end to the menace.
Also speaking, the state Commissioner for Energy and Natural Resources, Dr. Peter Medee, informed the CDC members that they were not invited to be accused but to partner with the state government to proffer lasting solution to the soot problem plaguing the state.
While sensitizing the people on the global Coronavirus pandemic, the state Commissioner for Information and Communications, Pastor Paulinus Nsirim, who is also the chairman of the Awareness Committee on the Prevention of Coronavirus in the state, said the government decided to set up the committee on Coronavirus prevention because the state Chief Executive, Chief Nyesom Wike, places high premium on the wellbeing of all residents in the state.
He noted that this was not the time to spiritualize but to take proactive steps, improve on personal hygiene level and protect ourselves and our loved ones.
While contributing to the discussion, the Forum of Community Development Committees in Rivers State, endorsed the concept of modular refineries, and pledged readiness to support government efforts to float modular refineries in parts of the state as a mechanism for checking unemployment and rising criminality, while stopping the scourge of oil theft and illegal refining activities in the state.
The Coordinator-General of the forum in Rivers State, Mr John Onwubualili, who spoke on behalf of members of the forum, said that the initiative, if implemented, was capable of addressing the myriad of environmental challenges facing the region, while building the economic capacity of the people to respond to the needs of the present day realities.