Mkpoikana Udoma
Port Harcourt — The Minister of State for Environment, Mrs. Sharon Ikeazor, has called the House of Reps Committee on Host Communities, to help in addressing the activities of artisanal refining and re pollution in Ogoniland.
Ikeazor during an interactive session with members of the Reps Committee, said the Ogoni clean-up project was a priority project for the President, assuring that she will do all that is required to ensure that the people of Ogoni get the full benefit from the project.
The Minister who recently had an interface with Ogoni stakeholders on their expectations and concerns about the project, said polluted areas hitherto not covered in the UNEP Report, will be attended to in order to ensure every impacted site in Ogoniland was remediated at once.
“The long-awaited water for the people of Ogoni has been addressed as six water contractors are currently working to provide potable water in Ogoniland, while additional 12 water contractors will soon be engaged.
“HYPREP has completed 19 of the 21 lots in Phase 1 Batch 1 Remediation works; 18 lots have been certified and closed out by NOSDRA while the remaining two lots are at different stages of completion.
“HYPREP is working with UNEP to carry out reconnaissance of polluted sites that were not covered in the UNEP Report, to improve the capacity of farmlands and aquatic environment to support farming and fishing activities. 156 out of 176 sites have been visited by the HYPREP/UNEP team.”
The Minister also disclosed that HYPREP has trained youths of Ogoni in various aspects of remediation and has created over 2,300 jobs.
She, however, noted with great concern cases of vandalization, contractors not allowed access to sites, delay on some remediation sites caused by restive youths, chieftaincy tussles and communal disputes.
“HYPREP has designed programs to provide alternative livelihood for the people of Ogoni. Youths will be trained to provide surveillance in Ogoni while the livelihood programs will also target those involved in artisanal refining to provide them with alternative means of livelihood.”
Also, the Project Coordinator of HYPREP, Prof. Philip Shekwolo, who explained the process of the soil recovering through natural attenuation and bioremediation, said the life cycle of the project covers four thematic areas namely, remediation, livelihood, water and health.
For his part, the Director General of NOSDRA, Mr. Idris Musa, told the Committee that the issues which hitherto caused delays in the clean-up project have been addressed, assuring that the project was not only running smoothly, but HYPREP has achieved about 68 percent out of the originally delineated lots.
Responding, Chairman of the Committee, Hon. Dumnamene Dekor, decried over the damages caused by artisanal refining to the environment and reiterated the need to ensure that those involved were adequately covered in the livelihood program otherwise he added, the clean-up will be an effort in futility.
Dekor expressed the readiness of the members of the committee to work with HYPREP to address the issues of re-pollution caused by artisanal refining, adding that with the high number of Ogoni people on the HYPREP Board, the people should be held accountable should the clean-up project fail.
