Balancing extractive industry with environmental benefits

But the increased environmental damage, caused by the operators of the sector, to communities in the country has continued to create concern among stakeholders in the nation’s oil and gas industry.Some of the stakeholders argue that the environmental damage cased by the industry is  unimaginable and outweighs the economic benefits the country derive from it.The […]

But the increased environmental damage, caused by the operators of the sector, to communities in the country has continued to create concern among stakeholders in the nation’s oil and gas industry.
Some of the stakeholders argue that the environmental damage cased by the industry is  unimaginable and outweighs the economic benefits the country derive from it.
The Niger Delta communities are  not the only ones suffering from the damages caused by oil exploration, especially by  six dominant  international oil companies, including Shell, Mobil, Chevron, Agip, Elf and  Texaco.
Other communities, in other parts of the country, are also suffering from environmental effects of other extractive activities such as mining of clay,limestone, lead, phosphate , gemstone etc.
The  effects sometimes result in water pollution, air pollution, diseases, lack of green-house effects and even death.
Stakeholders have, therefore, expressed their concerns about the rate of environmental abuse operators of extractive industry sector have continually caused to their  host communities in recent times.
They noted that the fact that more people  in the communities are being denied their peace due to the operation of extractive industries is a handicap to the economy desiring to grow through human capital development.
Global Rights, Human Rights Watch, BBC etc., revealed that in Zamfara State,where commercial mining of gold takes place, villagers who engaged in extraction of ore use crude implements with little or no safety measures in place.
The groups disclosed this during a two-day workshop  held in Lagos, recently.
The group said the implication is that soil being contaminated with lead is easily taken home by the miners which then poison people via hand-to-mouth contamination. This eventually caused death of many, especially children.
The groups bemoaned the  situation in Zamfara,which has not improved yet, as government has failed to stop  illegal mining there or sanitise the activity.
The Niger Delta Human Development Report says  the prevailing situation in the region  explains the increasing spate of restiveness as well as presents a  hopeless future for the region and country.
Global Rights Partner for  Justice said at the Lagos workshop that  huge amount of money is expended by multinationals operating in the region to maintain their facility and bring about peace and tranquility in the region.
According to the groups, between  2007 and 2011, Shell spent  $96 billion on securing their installation in the Niger-Delta region.Within the period, the company  divested over US $30 billion.
A participant at the workshop, Joshepine Odikpo of Centre for Rights and Development, reasoned  that if the money had been judiciously  channeled,  it would have been adequate to transform the entire region and improve the lives of the people.
To Emeka Nwanevu of NOPRIN,  the money is more than the  annual budget of many African countries,while  Endurance Uhmauavbi of NBA section on Business Law noted that but for the crisis in the region, multinational organisations operating there would not have taken the divestment option.
Nwada Oluka of Alliance for Africa, posited that the federal government’s fiscal policies and laws, such as the Petroleum Act, Land Use Act which vest the ownership of lands on governments, has contributed immensely in increasing the tempo of  the crisis in the industry.
According to him, the federal government by the  acts,  holds all mineral rights and is responsible for issuing exploration and development licenses whereas, there is  no government presence in the region.
Cathering Adewojo of Boabab for Women’s Right  and Collins Okeke of HURILAWS asserted  that the  crisis in extractive industry is made worse by the lack of governance in the affected areas and the overzealousness of the security personnel put in place by government and  multinational companies operating in the extractive  industry.
  Megan Chapman  of SERAC noted that human rights records of the security operatives in extractive industry, especially the Niger Delta region, is  appalling, as the security operatives rape women and unjustly kill the people.
She said the development  has brewed so much distrust and apathy in the communities.
Corroborating her views, Nora Okoroafor of Partnership for Justice  said people of the Niger Delta area have health  issues, including breathing problems and skin lesions, as a result of oil exploration activities.
According to her, many people living  close to where exploration and extraction take place are denied their basic means of livelihood,  access to food and  clean water.
Besides, Global Rights, in partnership with other NGO’s, have begun advocating for the adoption of voluntary principles on  security and human rights by the Nigeria government and multi-national companies operating within the country as a way of ending the  crisis in the  extractive industry in the country.
According to Global Rights, the Voluntary Principles on  Security and Human Rights, VPs are a set of non-binding  principles created to assist extractive companies balance  security concerns with human rights.
The VPs were launched  in 2000 and are a tripartite multi-stakeholder initiative.
Participants include eight countries, states, 12 NGOs, 21 multi-national companies and five organisations with observer status.
The VPs were developed in response to reports of  human rights abuses allegedly committed by security providers contracted by the extractive industry.The principles apply to interactions with both public and private security forces.
They are voluntary, but several  companies, both participants and non-participants, have  incorporated the VPs into their management systems and agreements with contractors.
Provisions in voluntary principles include, regular  consultations between companies and host governments and local communities; issues of proportionality and use of  force; improved company engagement for protection of human  rights by their security contractors; monitoring of progress of investigations into alleged abuses; inclusion of appropriate provisions in contracts and review of the background of private security that companies intend to employ.