Nigeria's National Assembly has begun the constitutional
amendment process, and as usual, all sorts of areas in the
constitution have been proposed for amendment. One area that is
often ignored but critical for Nigeria's survival is the
environment. The environment is not just an abstract policy area
but the foundation upon which Nigeria's economy, public health,
and social stability rest.
Nowhere is this more evident than in the Niger Delta region,
where decades of oil pollution have created one of the world's
most severe environmental crises. Since oil's discovery in
1958, this once-pristine ecosystem has endured systematic
degradation, with conservative estimates indicating between 9 and
13 million barrels of oil released into the environment. Recent
data from the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency
shows that between 2020-2021 alone, 822 separate oil spills
released 28,003 barrels of oil into sensitive ecosystems.
