Gambia-l,
I wonder if The Gambia government has any environmental guidelines and
standards in place for the petroleum industry before giving a green light
for proposed oil refineries by Global Management Group?
The following article is alarming and is some of the reasons why a proper
enveronmental assesment is necessary when allowing these oil companies to
operate in the Country.
Momodou Camara
------------------------------
Government Raises Toxic Waste Alarm
This Day (Lagos)
July 31, 2002
Mike Oduniyi
Lagos says oil companies plan to dump 35,000 metric tonnes
The Federal Government yesterday said it had uncovered plans by some
oil producing companies to dump about 35,000 metric tonnes of
waste in
remote locations in the country.
Presidential Adviser on Petroleum and Energy, Dr Rilwanu Lukman, who
made this known in Lagos yesterday, warned that the government would
not tolerate this and urged the companies to adhere strictly to the
appropriate process for waste disposal as directed by the Department
of Petroleum Resources (DPR).
Lukman who also launched the revised guidelines on environmental
standards for the Nigerian petroleum industry, directed that the more
than 134 waste pits, which constituted a great menace in the Niger
Delta, should be rehabilitated, restored and closed.
"I am aware that there are about 35,000 metric tonnes of drill cuttings
stockpiled in abandoned drill locations and plans by some operators to dump
same in remote locations," he said.
"We must warn that this is unacceptable to government," he added.
Lukman, who was represented by
the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of
Petroleum Resources, Ms Ama Pepple, directed that the operators should
complete the process of shutting down all the waste pits in the next 18
months.
He said that a committee had been set up within the DPR, the nation's
oil industry monitors, to review and revisedwhere necessary, the enabling
laws including those for the control and protection of the
environment "with a view to including clauses for the prosecution of
defaulters."
Lukman said that the government did not only recently wake up to provide
for the protection and control of the environment, citing the Petroleum
Acts, Laws and Decrees that were put in place since the 1950s and 1960s.
"With the tremendous increase in oil and gas activities in Nigeria, and the
attendant environmental impact...it became necessary to match the pace of
activities in the industry with control measures from the per
spective of
environmental protection and control," he said.
He enjoined oil producers not only to meet the challenges of the emerging
environmental control technologies and their attendant concerns, but also
to take on the societal issues that had erupted in their areas of operation.
Also speaking at the occasion, Director Department of Petroleum Resources,
Dr Mac Ofurhie said the launch of the revised edition, though coming six
years behind schedule, came at a time "the preservation of the eco-system
of the operational areas of the oil and gas industry is considered a high
priority on government's agenda."
Ofurhie said that the objective of the revised guidelines was to
standardise the environmental pollution abatement and monitoring
procedures, including the analytical methods of various parameters.
"It is to establish guidelines and standards for the environmental
quality control of
the petroleum industry, taking into account existing
local conditions and planned monitoring programmes," said the DPR boss.
He called on operators to explore efficient means of conducting their
exploration, production, transportation, processing and marketing
activities in order to reduce to the barest minimum, the incidence of
environmental pollution such as oil spills and other forms of effluent
discharges.
Industry analysts viewed the new guidelines as government's direct response
to increasing agitation and protests by oil producing communities over
environmental pollution wrought by oil exploration activities.
In the last one month, Chevron Nigeria Limited oil production facilities
had been invaded by Ijaw and Itsekiri women to protest among other issues,
pollution of their environment.
Government issued the first set of environmental guidelines and standards
for the petroleum industr
y in 1991.
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