A new oil spill at a Shell facility in Nigeria has contaminated farmland and a river, upending livelihoods in fishing and farming communities in the Niger Delta, which has long endured environmental pollution caused by the oil industry.
The National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency, or NOSDRA, told The Associated Press that the spill came from the Trans-Niger Pipeline operated by Shell that crosses through communities in the Eleme area of Ogoniland, a region where the London-based energy giant has faced decades-long local pushback for its oil exploration.
The volume of oil spilt has not been determined, but activists have published images of polluted farmland and water surfaces blighted by oil sheens and dead fish mired in sticky crude.
While spills are frequent in the region due to vandalism and a lack of maintenance to pipelines, according to the UN Environmental Programme, activists call this a “major one”.
