Oil & Gas
HEDA Resource Centre, Nigeria, in conjunction some international Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have jointly submitted a comprehensive report to the Public Hearing on Environmental Damages in Oil Producing Communities hosted by the House of Representatives’ Joint Committee on Environment, Petroleum Resources Upstream, Petroleum Resources Downstream, and Climate Change.
This is contained in a statement made available to RealNews Magazine on Sunday in Lagos
The statement said that the submission underscored urgent concerns regarding the environmental crisis in the Niger Delta.
It listed the international CSOs as ReCommon, Italy; Hawkmoth, The Netherlands; and Corner House Research, United Kingdom.
The statement said that the ten-page report was signed by Olanrewaju Suraju for HEDA Resource Centre, Antonio Tricarico of ReCommon, Simon Taylor of Hawkmoth, and Nicholas Hildyard of Corner House Research.
The report drew the attention of the Parliament to the grave issue of environmental genocide inflicted upon communities of the Niger Delta due to relentless oil and gas exploitation.
The report scrutinized the role of industry giants Shell and Eni in perpetuating environmental degradation and raised profound apprehensions regarding their proposed divestments from onshore oil licenses.
The coalition emphasized that the devastation wrought by oil companies in the Niger Delta demands immediate, wholistic, participatory, and decisive actions.
“The international oil companies should not be permitted to evade their obligations to remediate the legacy of pollution, regardless of its origins,” the statement said.
Furthermore, the coalition urges the Joint Committee to recommend empowering relevant agencies like the NUPRC to enforce regulations governing divestment and accountability by the oil operating companies.
Central to the coalition’s demands is the insistence that no divestments should proceed without comprehensive consultation with local communities.
“Environmental damages must be thoroughly assessed, and funds must be secured in escrow to ensure the full coverage of cleanup costs,” the statement said.
Additionally, the coalition calls for the establishment of legally-enforceable measures to remediate polluted areas and companies fidelity to decarbonization plans.
To oversee and ensure compliance with these critical actions, the coalition advocated for the establishment of a parliamentary monitoring committee.
“This committee would serve to oversee and uphold the cleanup process while ensuring the accountability of all stakeholders,” the statement added.
Finally, the civil society organizations reaffirmed their commitment to providing further information and offering their insights to support the parliamentary oversight and investigative efforts.
F.A
May 12, 2024
Tags: CSOs Eni HEDA IOCs Divestment Shell
