The Project Coordinator of HYPREP, Prof Nenibarini Zabbey, who made the announcement, explained that high-risk complex sites were sites where the soil and groundwater were contaminated and were located within residential areas.
Speaking when he took a delegation of a Belgian remediation firm, Haemers Technologies, led by its Chairman, Jan Haemers, to high-risk complex sites in Alode, Eleme Local Government Area of Rivers State, Zabbey assured that HYPREP was determined to deploy the global best innovative technology in the project.
The HYPREP boss further explained that the one-year gap before the commencement of the actual cleanup of the complex sites was imperative to enable a proper assessment and characterization of the sites for proper scoping.
He assured the people of Ogoni that HYPREP would give them the best remediation project obtainable globally and also build their capacity through technology transfer, to enable them to stay useful in remediating hydrocarbon pollution across the Niger Delta and the country at large.
Zabbey stated: “Our remediation is structured into phases. The first phase is the simple sites, the medium-risk sites and the high-risk complex sites. The high-risk complex sites are sites where the soil and groundwater are contaminated and are located within residential areas. And in places like that, there is an absolute need for less disturbance, and in situ remediation.
*The HYPREP Project Coordinator, Prof Zabbey; Haemers Technologies Chairman, Haemers; and others at the complex site in Alode, Eleme
“So we have identified a couple of technologies including Haemers, and we are asking them to come and do a comprehensive assessment of the complex site to determine the extent of contamination and site characterization then come up with the fit-for-purpose technology. It could be a mix of technologies or a specific one.”
He added: “The site investigation will lead to a proper scoping of the work and hopefully by this time next year, the actual remediation of the high-risk complex sites will start.
“We need to do a thorough investigation to determine the situation. We are talking about groundwater contamination here, so we need to look at the flow pattern of the aquifer, hydraulic conductivity, extent of contamination and also do a lot of modelling before the job can be properly scoped and then contract it to appropriate contractors.”
Earlier, the Chairman of Haemers Technologies, Jan Haemers, said the remediation job would be done by the local people of Ogoni, while his company would only bring in the technology, adding that part of the job was assessment and characterisation.
Haemers said his company was a remediation technologies provider, which has been transferring technology around the world to remediate contaminated soil and groundwater in South Sudan, Congo, South America, Europe, Vietnam, etc.
“I have been invited for the partnership to bring remediation technologies to this area, particularly in contaminated soil and groundwater remediation. We believe the pollution here is the same nature as in other parts of Africa and even North and South America.
“By ensuring most of the jobs are done by community people, while we bring in the technology. We believe since the local people have suffered the environmental pollution, the clean-up benefits should also be done by the local people, so they can developtransferringand be the driving force for the whole remediation which will take decades,” he said.
