14 November 2011, Sweetcrude, Uyo, Akwa Ibom – Deputy governor of Akwa Ibom State, Mr Nsima Ekere, has called for a provision in the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) before the National Assembly for claims on injuries occasioned by environmental damage and ecological degradation.
Ekere spoke at the National Mandatory Continuous Professional Development seminar of the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV) in Uyo.
According to him, there was a need to tell oil and gas industry operators in Nigeria that environmentally-destructive practices would no longer be tolerated.
“The outcome of the absence of a total economic valuation has denied host communities of their sources of livelihood as farmers and fishermen,” he said.
The deputy governor, who is a member of the NIESV, said the threat of global warming and climate change, fuelled by sustained exploitation, depletion and unharnessed natural resources, was posing a great danger to the future of the human race.
