The Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF), an NGO and other environment focused Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have called for urgent action to check renewed pollution incidents in the Ogoni area of Rivers.
This is contained in a statement issued on Friday by the Media/Communications Lead of HOME, Miss Kome Odhomor.
The Executive Director of HOMEF, Dr Nnimmo Bassey, in particular, called for swift action to plug leakages, remediate the land, and conduct health audits on affected communities, especially following the recent crude oil spill in B-Dere community.
”We are in a disaster zone and further disasters can erupt from even an accidental spark of fire.
”The old wells should be shut down, and decommissioned.
”We call on the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency and other relevant authorities to move into swift action to stem the unfolding ecological and human crises,” he said.
Also, Celestine Akpobari, an environmental activist also said the situation was becoming more volatile with spills of this nature.
He said that a recent pipeline explosion in the B-Dere community triggered a crude oil spill.
Akpobari called for the decommissioning of aged oil infrastructure and the replacement of lost livelihoods, as well as securing justice for the people of Ogoni.
NAN
