Socio-economic Baseline for oil-impacted communities in Ogoniland: Towards a Restoration Framework in Niger Delta, Nigeria.

doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-2583759/v1

This study documents the socio-economic baselines in selected oil-impacted communities prior to the commencement of the Ogoni clean-up and restoration project. Adopting mixed approach consisting of semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions (FGDs), key informant interviews (KIIs), and household surveys, we surveyed the pre-remediation socio-economic conditions in the Ogoniland communities between July 2018 to March 2019. Results indicated that almost all respondents (99.6%) agreed that the smell of petroleum products or crude oil was evident in the air they breathed even as there were visible black particles (soot) in the respondents’ nostrils, on their clothes and in water. The respondents described the ambient air as smoky, and choked with an offensive smell. The household waters were smelly, brownish, or oily, and most respondents (76%) cannot afford to treat their water. Forty-two percent of the respondents who relied on fishing and farming for a living sought for alternative means of subsistence and acknowledged that oil pollution caused stunted growth and low crop yield. The majority of respondents (91%) reported falling fish catches, while the fish caught smell and taste of oil, lowering their market value and posing a potential health risk to consumers. It is evident that oil pollution has impacted the socio-ecological values and sustainable livelihood in Ogoniland. This study provides a framework for monitoring post-remediation socio-economic improvements in Ogoniland. It also highlights areas of urgent intervention to improve livelihood, and access to basic amenities (e.g., potable drinking water), waste management infrastructure, and statutory policy changes for sustainable development in Ogoniland.

Alternative livelihoods

Oil-contamination

artisanal refining

Ramsar

ecological restoration

Environmental and socio-economic impacts are commonplace in natural resource-dependent economies. Given the increasing awareness and the need to meet global goals including the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), environmental remediation and ecosystem restoration is gaining traction in developing countries. In Nigeria for example, the Niger Delta region is currently hosting the Ogoni remediation and Bodo Creek restoration projects. Both projects would need environmental and socio-economic baselines to measure remediation and restoration progress and project outcomes.

Natural resource mining is associated with severe environmental, economic, and socio-cultural impacts. Countries, particularly developing ones, faced with these impacts struggle to contribute to global visions, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, and several climate related actions. In developing countries such as Nigeria, Angola and Equatorial Guinea, host communities have reported high likelihood of exposures to hazards associated (e.g., polyaromatic hydrocarbons, PAHs) (Sam et al., 2023), with natural resource mining causing severe public health and environmental risks, and loss of livelihood that often dislocate the local economy (Ovadia, 2014; Lamine and Xiong, 2013; Sam and Zabbey, 2018). Within Nigeria, the attendant impacts of oil exploration and exploitation have been attributed to the neglect and lack of duty of care of the oil industry operators (UNEP, 2011), weak legislation (Sam 2015), overlapping regulatory responsibilities (Sam et al., 2017), poor enforcement, and an increasing lack of commitment to sustainable environmental management (Ogunkan 2022). As a result, communities that host natural resource mining activities face severe consequences that limit their access to sustainable traditional livelihoods, potable drinking water, fertile soil for agriculture, and a flourishing ecosystem that can support and improve access to ecosystem goods and services needed for life sustenance (Pegg and Zabbey, 2013).

The magnitude of socio-ecological impacts occasioned by the oil industry operations in Nigeria has been attributed to gaps in sectoral legislation. For example, oil mining activities began in Nigeria in 1958 and the first legislation, the Petroleum Act 1969 (which reflected on environmental management), came 10 years later (Sam et al., 2017), and the country is yet to develop comprehensive legislation for oil spills detection and responses more than 50 years after the full operationalization of the oil and gas sector. As a result, the Niger Delta region, the hub of oil exploration and production in Nigeria, has experienced large scale oil spills. Consequently, the land, water, fauna, flora, and air in the region are known to be severely contaminated from incessant oil spills (Elum et al., 2016; Sam et al., 2022).

The situation in the region is characterized by an absence of trust between relevant stakeholders, e.g., host communities do not trust international oil companies (IOCs) (UNEP, 2011), following decades of oil spills and the exposure of community members to plausible risks without remediation or management action (Pegg and Zabbey 2013). In addition, corporate social responsibility projects that could have provided social support structures for the oil-impacted communities have failed in many instances (Mbalisi 2020) because of exclusion and decades of frustration. As a result of this neglect and the inability of local communities to access clean land or alternative livelihoods, the communities are often characterized by protests (UNEP 2011), inter-communal conflicts, and violence as local communities struggle to farm on few available uncontaminated lands (Osuagwu and Olaifa 2018; Anderson, 2003; Edo, 2012; Ibeanu, 2000; Idemudia, 2009). The communities in Ogoniland are exposed to petroleum pollutants at elevated concentrations in outdoor air, food, and drinking water, and they have dermal contacts from contaminated soil, sediments, and surface water (UNEP 2011). WHO’s global health observatory records an average life expectancy in Nigeria as being less than 55 years; this could be even lower in Ogoniland communities, where community members have lived with chronic oil pollution throughout their lives. Local communities continually expressed displeasure, distrust, and dissatisfaction with the level of environmental degradation and socio-economic losses via protests and agitations.

The results of the Environmental Assessment of Ogoniland undertaken by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in 2011 provided evidence of extensive soil and groundwater contamination in the area. The UNEP report provided evidence that locals in Ogoni communities were exposed to hydrocarbons through different pathways, including the air they breathe, the water they drink, and dermal contact with polluted soil or water, and that these had cumulatively affected the health of local communities in the area. In 2019, eight years after the UNEP assessment report, the Nigerian government inaugurated the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) to implement the recommendations of the report. In 2016, the government flagged off the remediation project, however, it took years for actual remediation work to commence as HYPREP needed to set up governance and administrative structures. Given the dynamic nature of the Niger Delta environment, there is a high probability that the status of many environmental and socio-economic parameters investigated by UNEP might have changed.

A significant challenge for the remediation of polluted sites in Ogoniland would be establishing baselines for the restoration of certain environmental media, e.g., biodiversity restoration would be dependent on establishing baselines for the microbial community. Thus, achieving near pristine environmental restoration would be a challenge as there were no baselines documented prior to the five-decade oil spills. To fill this gap, this study aims to provide a pre-remediation baseline for purposes of monitoring and referencing, along the project lifecycle. Mainly, the study presents the current situation of Ogoni communities regarding oil contamination and provides information and tools to help remediation decisions and agencies reach their goals and meet community expectations, while also providing baselines for communities that were not considered in the UNEP report.

Regulatory framework for contaminated land management in Nigeria

The Nigerian contaminated land regulatory framework transcends three eras. First, the era of no regulation (1956–1968), the era of no specific regulation (1969–2001), and the era of specific regulation (2002 - till date) (Sam et al., 2017). During the period of no legislation (1956–1968), oil exploitation was initiated (1956), regional management of the sector was being developed (1956–1959), and Nigeria achieved Independence (1960). No specific regulations to manage contaminated land were in place at this time, nor were there any legal instruments available to discourage soil and groundwater contamination (Ite, 2013) arising from oil exploration and exploitation activities. At the end of this period oil contamination incidents were on the rise, which elicited a response from the government and marked the beginning of the period of non-specific legislation. The development of the Petroleum Act (1969) introduced an overarching law that empowered the Minister of Petroleum Resources to make regulations for the prevention of environmental pollution in the country.

Governance and regulatory frameworks

Nigeria has developed institutions for environmental protection and management. However, several agencies, departments and units across the three tiers of government undertake overlapping responsibilities (Fig. 1; Sam et al., 2022). For example, the National Oil Spills Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) has a responsibility to identify, determine, and respond to oil spills within Nigerian territory (Rim-rukeh, 2015; Ambituuni et al., 2014), however, this same function is undertaken by the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR). Similarly, HYPREP has recently been given a mandate to respond to legacy oil spills in parts of the Niger Delta region. At a more strategic and operational level, NOSDRA’s responsibilities overlap with those of DPR, and now HYPREP. For example, when an oil spill occurs, the IOC involved reports the incident to NOSDRA and DPR, and both agencies undertake independent and parallel actions (Sam et al., 2017). This results in an economic burden on the government (e.g., both agencies undertake risk assessment of the reported site) and could potentially impact the legitimacy of the site management recommendations provided by any of the agencies.

Similarly, different states of the Nigerian federation have their own independent environmental protection agencies, whose functions often overlap with the federal agencies. The activities of these institutions are interrelated and overlap in many areas, which has led to unnecessary prolonged bureaucracies, duplications, and inefficiency (Sam et al., 2022). In addition to the governance problems of contaminated land management in Nigeria, the regulatory thresholds or permissible levels used to make judgments on whether or not a land is contaminated are weak and inadequate to govern a sustainable remediation process (UNEP 2011; Sam et al., 2022). For example, the Environmental Guidelines and Standards for the Petroleum Industry (EGASPIN) outline 5000 mg/kg and 50 mg/kg as the intervention and target values for total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) in soil, respectively. The UNEP report on Ogoniland recommended a review of these regulatory thresholds as they were overarchingly high and could lead to high residual risk in environmental media. In addition, a generic intervention and target value for all land uses were not sustainable and could lead to high residual risks in a remediated environment.

These overlapping functions, complex governance structures, and ineffective regulatory thresholds could affect the effective management of contaminated sites in the Niger Delta region and thus should constitute parameters to be monitored for effective contaminated land remediation and restoration. Policy changes, a streamlined governance structure, and contextual permissible levels are required for sustainable contaminated land remediation and restoration (Bardos et al., 2011, 2016; Hou et al., 2014; Hou and Al-Tabbaa, 2014; Luo et al., 2009).

INSERT FIGURE 1

One of the benefits of the remediation exercise in Ogoniland would be the development of effective and sustainable agencies for environmental governance. The current regulatory baseline is vulnerable to conflicts of interest, overlapping responsibilities, and weak regulatory thresholds (UNEP, 2011; Sam et al., 2017). As a monitoring tool for checking for improvements during the remediation project in Ogoniland, an interesting area to envision change would be the streamlining of regulatory agencies, and the development of comprehensive legislation that provides for efficient and sustainable land contamination management. In addition, any evolving statutory changes might face similar overlapping roles if there is no clear delineation of roles between NOSDRA, HYPREP, and DPR.

Following the publication of a seminal report in 2011 on the levels and impact of oil contamination on the total environment in Ogoniland (UNEP, 2011), the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) set up on December 12, 2016 the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) via Gazette No. 176, Volume 103, to clean, remediate, and restore oil contamination (https://hyprep.gov.ng) in and outside Ogoniland. Actual boots-on-the-ground in terms of deploying the first batch of cleanup contractors to remediate the less complex sites in Ogoniland started in January 2019, which was eight years after the UNEP report. Between when the UNEP report was released and the commencement of the Ogoniland cleanup eight years later, there were several new spills in the area that reinforced the old legacy oil-spill contaminated sites and aggravated the impact on the area’s socio-ecological system. The livelihood data presented in this paper are intended to complement the UNEP report by providing a more up-to-date basis and indicators for measuring the success of the Ogoniland cleanup in line with the philosophy and principles of the before-impact-control-impact (BACI) model.

Study area

Ogoniland is situated in Rivers State, Nigeria, and covers around 1,000 km². The population is approximately 1,000,000 persons, who are predominantly fisherfolks and farmers, residing in 226 communities in four local government areas (LGAs): Eleme, Gokana, Khana and Tai (Fig. 2). The local population are predominantly farmers and fisherfolks that depend on clean land and rivers as livelihood structures (Sam et al., 2018). With increased land and marine contamination, there is a remarkable decrease in dependence on these resources which has resulted in reduced income earnings in local communities (Nwozor, 2019).

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Research design

The study used a mixed approach mainly qualitative to elicit socio-demographic data, status of the environment and waste management practices from the study population. These were validated with the quantitative approach using structured questionnaire administered to 269 adults in household survey.

Sampling procedure and data collection

Nine communities were sampled (Table 1) for this research, covering oil-impacted and non-impacted communities in Ogoniland. While an “oil-impacted community” is described as a community that has experienced oil spills and is to be remediated and also has oil pipelines criss-crossing the community, a “non-impacted community” serves as a control, has neither experienced oil spills nor has oil infrastructure e.g., pipeline. Eight oil impacted communities and one control community were sampled. However, during the study it was discovered that the control community may have experienced secondary impact in the past through surface water or tidal flow. This is a phenomenon commonly found in communities in Ogoniland and in many other communities in the Niger Delta (Albert et al., 2018).

Table 1

Communities and local government areas sampled
	Community	LGA	Impacted/Non-impacted
1	Agbi	Eleme	Impacted
2	Ekpangbala	Eleme
3	Gio	Tai
4	Kporghor	Tai
5	Kegbara Dere	Gokana
6	Mogho	Gokana
7	Kpean	Khana
8	Buan
9	Luere Beeri		Control

INSERT Table 1

Key Informant Interview (KII) of stakeholders

Stakeholders Engagement

Stakeholders, including non-governmental organisations, academia, lawmakers, policymakers, community leaders, regulators, the armed forces, and the diplomatic community, were identified from previously conducted research in the literature (e.g., the UNEP report) and the scoping mission that led to this study. Identified stakeholders were contacted via phone calls and emails (Prpich et al., 2019; Sam et al., 2017). Other stakeholders for the engagement were identified through the snowball approach (i.e., identified stakeholders from literature, identified other stakeholders necessary for the engagement). Stakeholders (Table 2) from 14 key organizations participated in the various data collection engagements conducted in November and December 2018. Stakeholder engagement activities, including interviews and workshops were organised in the nine communities, Port Harcourt, and Abuja.

Table 2

List of stakeholders engaged during KII
Organisation	Location
Facility for Oil Sector Transparency and Reform in Nigeria (FOSTER)	Abuja
Cordaid Nigeria	Abuja
Chair of mediation process for Bodo Community	Abuja
Federal Ministry of Health, Div. of Environmental Health	Abuja
National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA)	Abuja
Federal Ministry of Environment, Div. of Environmental Impact Assessment	Abuja
Member of National Assembly, Federal Constituency	Abuja
Amnesty International	Abuja
Netherlands Embassy in Nigeria	Abuja
Nigeria Security and Civil Defence	Eleme
Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP)	Port Harcourt
Stakeholder Democracy Network Nigeria (SDN)	Port Harcourt
National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA), Rivers State	Port Harcourt
Joint Task Force (JTF)	Gokana

INSERT Table 2

Focus Group Discussions (FGDs)

In each community, three FGDs were held for the Council of Chiefs, women, and youths, respectively (Figs. 3, 4 and 5). In all, 27 FGDs were held across the different locations. This strategy provided a participatory platform for all stakeholders to express themselves without fear and anxiety. When possible, the first FGD was held with the Council of Chiefs, the traditional rulers of the community, and this gave the team the opportunity to ask their permission to engage with other groups – which is a cultural requirement.

INSERT FIGURE 3

INSERT FIGURE 4

The conversation was semi-structured, and the participants were invited to discuss issues in depth and ask follow-up questions. Women were provided with a safe space to address sensitive issues, which created an opportunity for them to be open as the discussion was guided and prompted by females. The youths were also separately engaged to foster trust and confidence while they expressed their viewpoints on the issues raised during the interview.

INSERT FIGURE 5

Household Survey (Questionnaire)

Household surveys were conducted with structured questionnaires, which were administered to thirty randomly selected households in each of the nine sampled communities (270 households were sampled across nine communities). The questionnaire targeted key issues in each field to obtain a broad scope of answers from different participants.

Data Analysis

Data from the household surveys were compiled, cross-checked for accuracy, and entered into Microsoft Excel 2010 on Windows spreadsheet. The data sets were then analysed in the SPSS Statistical Software package, version 22, and presented in tables and charts. Frequencies and basic descriptive statistics were calculated, including cross-tabulations to determine potential relationships between key variables. Audio recordings of participants’ submissions during the FGDs were transcribed verbatim as narratives. The transcripts were coded and analysed using thematic content analysis based on the study objectives.

Quality control

The semi-structured and structured questionnaires were written and presented to social science experts at the University of Port Harcourt, Rivers State, the Centre for Environment, Human Right and Development (CEHRD), Port Harcourt, and the LKL International Consulting Inc. Montreal, Canada for content validity - the extent to which the items in the instrument represent the content of the attribute being measured (Amin, 2004.). To ensure reliability (accuracy and consistency), the instruments were pretested on a different population before being taken to the field.

4.1 Social demographic characteristics of survey respondents

The study included 269 adult residents from nine communities, ranging in age from 20 and 80 years old. They comprised of 137 (52.7%) males and 123 (47.3%) females. The occupations of the participants ranged widely from farming, fishing, teaching, and local government workers to artisans (apprentices/trainees in skills), trading, and studying. The majority of respondents (47%) had a high school education, while (28.1%) had tertiary education (Table 3).

Table 3

Respondents’ demographic characteristic
Variable	Number of Respondents	Percentage (%)
Age n = 263
≤ 30	65	24.7
31–50	136	51.7
51–70	54	20.5
≥ 71	8	3.1
Gender n = 260
Male	137	52.7
Female	123	47.3
Education n = 249
Primary	62	24.9
Secondary	117	47.0
Tertiary	70	28.1
Occupation n = 252
Farmers	112	44.4
Fisher folks	19	7.5
Traders	42	16.7
Civil servants	42	16.7
Artisans	31	12.3
Students	6	2.4

INSERT Table 3

Community Perception on Contamination

Contamination of air

In the sampled communities, the smell of crude oil and petroleum products was a common experience. From the FGDs, it was gathered that there is constant soot (black carbon) in the air, most likely occasioned by the artisanal refining of crude oil. “Our air is much polluted, and this is affecting our health: you cannot leave your clothes on the line overnight, because they will be stained with black soot,” a community member commented. Similarly, another youth group emphasized that their white clothes get stained with soot when exposed to the air, which was echoed by different community groups. Overall, 99.6% of the surveyed respondents ticked ‘yes’, that their air was contaminated. This corresponds to recent research conducted in impacted communities in Rivers State, which revealed exposure to high levels of soot in the air (Whyte et al., 2020; Zabbey et al., 2021). The respondents described their experiences as including: having black particles or stains in their nostrils, especially in the morning; smoky air, choking or offensive smells in the air, stain on clothes; and discolouration of water.

Contamination Of Water Resources

Rivers, streams, and creeks transverse the entire Ogoniland region with their daily activities and cultures deeply connected to their natural water sources (Eriegha and Sam, 2020; Zeeuw et al., 2018). The water bodies serve as sources of water for drinking, cooking, laundry, bathing, and other domestic activities. In addition, the water bodies form a huge part of their livelihood for fishing (Sam and Zabbey, 2018). The majority of participants at the FGDs perceive their water bodies to be contaminated (Table 4). While most of the communities depend solely on the contaminated water, some communities have found alternative sources of drinking water (Sam et al., 2022). Over 76% of the respondents in the communities do not treat their water before using it because they cannot afford to do so. Respondents at FGDs reported that they buy water with their lean resources, even when they cannot attest to the quality or source of the water. The communities used their streams for washing, drinking, and other cultural activities before they were degraded by oil spills. Some sites for cleanup are connected to the source of drinking water implying that the oil from the polluted site flows into the drinking water source, making it unsuitable and unusable. The alternative source of water is boreholes (provided by few private individuals in the community), which, according to the elders, are not safe for use since they originate from the same polluted aquifer. A community member asserted that “contamination of their environment has increased.” For instance, when water from the borehole is kept for two days, it changes colour, produces a taste, and stains the container.

Community leaders are primarily concerned about the palliative measures promised by the Federal Government before the cleanup which include, potable water, electricity, amongst others. Although the level of water pollution is not uniform across Ogoniland, some communities are severely impacted while others are slightly impacted. The contaminated river has in turn affected their aquatic ecosystem and resources such as fish, periwinkle, and crabs. Oil film or black mud is seen in/on their fishes which reduces the market value, is less attractive to buyers, and toxic when consumed.

Similarly, the youths, and chiefs in the communities expressed concerns that “the borehole water was not safe for drinking because of black particles and oil film in it, and the government should come to their rescue.”

Table 4

Stakeholders’ perception of water quality in Ogoniland
Variable	Frequency	Percentage%
Contamination of water
High	224	84.53
Medium	30	11.32
Low	11	4.15
Total	265	100
Contaminated Waters
Stream	218	81.04
Pond	83	30.86
Well	177	65.80
Borehole	145	53.90
Characteristics of household water
Brownish	120	44.61
Oily	177	65.80
Smelly	175	65.06
Has crude oil	130	48.33
Treatment of Drinking water
Yes	64	23.79
No	205	76.21
Total	269	100
* Responses from household survey.

INSERT Table 4

Agbi community in Eleme LGA has no stream or river. The sources of water are dug wells and boreholes at a few houses. The water from the borehole had black suspended particles when collected in buckets, as it was neither filtered nor treated. In order to meet their daily water needs, communities buy water from water vendors (commonly called “aboki”), who bring it in from outside the community. A community member asserted thus: “We spend over N500, the equivalent of USD $1, daily to buy water.”

Similar situations exist in the Ekpangbala community in Eleme LGA. Due to the level of contamination (Fig. 7), evidenced by the oil sheen on waters derived from boreholes and wells, water is bought from water tankers instead of the traditional sources (river, stream, well, and borehole), as was the practice prior to contamination. While the source of these waters sold by vendors cannot be ascertained, the community had no alternative patronise such services. A respondent from the community stated that “all our water sources are contaminated, both ground and surface water, we buy water from water tankers or go to nearby communities to fetch it”. Given that most community members might not have the resources to patronise water vendors, they resort to using the polluted water that is available. This, as expected, could potentially result in severe health implications such as skin rash, respiratory disease, and blood poisoning (Hasan et al., 2019; Ite et al., 2018; Li and Wu, 2019).

Communities in Khana LGA, such as Kpean has quite a number of surface water bodies. The major river is “Mui-teegu,” with its tributaries, which are impacted by oil, as stated by the different groups and confirmed by data from the sample analysis. Luere Beeri community (the control) has three streams: “Maabekpabee,”, “Maanyonaie,” and “Maayorgbara,”. During the FGDs, the community believed strongly that the streams were impacted regardless of the absence of oil spill record. They believed that oil spills from neighbouring communities may have compromised the quality of their surface water because of interconnectivity (Fig. 8). While the community feels that their solar powered borehole in the community primary school is fit for drinking; the community mentioned that they depend on their rainwater in addition to the solar-powered borehole.

The situation is not different in impacted communities in Gokana LGA. The elders said that Kegbara Dere has three boreholes that always have an oil sheen on them, and even on run-offs during rainfall. The youths confirmed that they use borehole water for other activities but buy drinking water. In Kegbara Dere, the “Op-dee” stream used to be the only source of drinking water before the oil contamination, and the other two rivers where they fish are highly impacted. In addition, they complained that they could smell crude oil in the air (which was obvious during data collection in the community), their surface water is dirty, and the periwinkle and fish were bitter, indicating contamination.

The Tai LGA’s communities drew drinking water primarily from streams and wells. A community member in Gio complained: “We only Use the well water, because the stream has oil floating on it, even our wells smell of petroleum product”.

Access to safe and potable drinking water, whether from streams, rivers, wells or boreholes, is at critical levels in these communities, as the surface and ground waters are contaminated with crude oil and not fit for consumption. Oil well heads (Fig. 6) commonly seen in many Ogoni communities is a reminder of the cause of pollutions and environmental degradations in Ogoniland.

INSERT FIGURE 6

Over 85% in the household survey rated water contamination as high (Fig. 7). The degree of contamination of the water sources, as indicated by the respondents, varied (Table 4).

INSERT FIGURE 7

Common characteristics of household water indicated by stakeholders from each community are shown in Fig. 8. Despite the level of contamination, 76.21% of the villagers do not treat the water before use, but 23.79% do so by boiling it (Table 4).

INSERT FIGURE 8

Contamination of Land and Crops

Ogoniland has alluvial and arable land suitable for variety of agricultural ventures. The people of Ogoni used to be predominately farmers and fisherfolk, though some engaged in trading, crafts and civil service (Fentima and Zabbey, 2015). This has changed over a five-decade period, following multiple oil spills that have polluted the land. As a result, land use across impacted communities has changed.

For instance, a community member in Agbi explained that ‘‘the land in the area was once used for cultivation of cassava and cocoyam, but now it can no longer be cultivated.’’ Another respondent said, “The area, before the havoc done by the oil spill, was the sacred land of the Agbi people of Ogale-Eleme; It is an area where almost all the water that flows during rainfall settles.” This is also demonstrated in agricultural produce harvested in impacted communities. Participants in the household survey stated that the growth characteristics of plants in their communities is an indication of overall agricultural output. Participants (42%) noted that the plants/trees were mostly stunted with black or no leaves, while others reported that the plants had slightly stunted shoots with black and yellow leaves (Table 5).

A participant at an FGD asserted: “The impact has been so much great that three plots of land cannot produce 10 basins of garri, we work harder with low yield.” Agricultural yield is reportedly low, while the size of produce such as cassava and yam are characteristically thin. The cocoyam, a staple crop in high demand locally called “togosugu,” was said to be locally extinct due to the effect of oil contamination. The plant is not grown or cultivated any more in Ogoni.

It is difficult to practice shifting cultivation due to oil pollution and climate change on available land. The level of pollution has affected farming system, plant growth and crop yield. Shifting cultivation was a common practice among farmers in Ogoni before the advent of incessant oil pollution in the area. Farmers in the area conventionally cultivate their farmland and after harvest allow the farmland to lie fallow for a period of three to five years. During the period, the farmer goes to cultivate other arable lands. With extensive oil pollution on farmlands, farmers no longer practice shifting cultivation given limited the availability of clean land.

Table 5

Participants description of plants in their communities
Nature of Plants/Tree	Frequency	Percentages
Mostly tall green shoots	22	8.18
Medium sized shoot and green and yellowish leaves	55	20.45
Slightly stunted shoot with black and yellow leaves	104	38.66
Mostly stunted with black or no leaves	112	41.64

INSERT Table 5

Impacts of Contamination on Wildlife

Participants at the FGDs and household surveys indicated that wildlife was more abundant and closer to their communities prior to oil spills in Ogoniland. Animals such as lions, antelopes, grasscutters, elephants, monkeys, bush pigs, alligators and crocodiles were abundant. Fish, birds, and other animals that were adversely affected by oil spills include: oysters, bloody cockles (bivalves), mudskippers, periwinkles, vultures, eaglets (awala), porcupines (bina), rabbits, foxes (gbe), and grasscutters (deelu). Due to changes in vegetation cover, some fast-moving animals had migrated to “a more favourable” ecosystem. Participants reported declining catches of prawns, crayfishes, mullets, mudskippers and crabs in their creeks. The dry season used to be a major fish harvest season, but now the case is different, characterised by very low catches; oil patches are left on the shores,” commented one of the participants. According to an elderly male participant, ‘‘we used to hear certain bird sounds, but now we no longer hear them’’ implying that such birds had gone extinct locally or migrated to more favourable areas and regions.

Another participant recounted that “apart from the disappearance of some species, there is a marked decline in the population of charismatic species around the neighborhood, such as snakes and water turtles”. The fisherfolk reported smelling petroleum in some fin and shell fishes caught in their creeks. Similar observations had earlier been reported in the Ogoniland (AI and CEHRD, 2011).

The changes in the environment, particularly habitat alteration, disturbance, or degradation, impact the local species’ community structure and create favourable habitat conditions for invasive species. The respondents posit that resilient wildlife such as monkeys, grass cutter and squirrels that were commonly sighted are becoming increasingly scarce. A 65-year-old hunter exclaimed, ‘‘there is no more wildlife in our forest!’’. The biodiversity of Ogoniland is in dire need of conservation and restoration. UNEP (2011) noted that the mangrove wetlands of Ogoniland are potential RAMSAR sites, if the degraded environments are effectively restored and sustainable protection mechanisms are put in place. The UN Decade of Ecosystem Restoration presents an opportunity for restoring degraded habitats in Ogoniland.

Impacts of oil contamination on Livelihoods

As indicated in Table 6, oil contamination has affected the main livelihood of the Ogoni people, which are farming and fishing. Most of the fishing is done in the rivers (49%), followed by creeks (38.29%), and streams (36,43%), while only 4% of fishing is done in the nearshore sea environment due to poor fishing gear and lack of fishers’ capacity to access the sea. Many of the fishing grounds have been destroyed by oil spills (see Fig. 9). About 91% of the respondents affirmed that their fishes smell and taste oil, thereby reducing the market value, and potentially pose health risk to consumers. Most respondents (89%) affirmed that oil contamination had changed their livelihood. People no longer catch subsistence fish in the contiguous creeks and rivers (Sam and Zabbey, 2018). The option of fishing further afield in the lower reaches of the Bonny River and the Atlantic Ocean nearshore is limited by the requisite crafts and gear, as well as by the threats of a rough sea and piracy. Seventy-eight percent of the respondents explained that, given the reduced fish landings, they only fish occasionally, not necessarily for a livelihood as in the past. This has long-term implications for the age-old fishing culture of the people. In Ogoniland, the indigenous fishing knowledge is transferred from one generation to the other through social scaffolding, whereby the younger ones learn the act of fishing through subtle participation (Fentiman and Zabbey, 2015). This includes taking a child along on fishing trips to bail out water from the canoe. The child then learns to fish by watching the more experienced older fisherwomen and fishermen. Fentiman and Zabbey (2015) reported that the inability to organize the annual "dor bon fish fencing party" in the Bodo Creek since 2008, when the creek was hit by two major oil spills, is eroding the fishing knowledge of the community and has created a knowledge gap that might be lost completely or take considerable time to recover.

INSERT FIGURE 9

Similarly, 57.25% of respondents claimed that farming was their only source of livelihood. Oil contamination has affected farming, according to 91.45% of the household survey respondents. confirmed Contamination of arable land had crippled farming in Ogoniland and resulted in poor yields (Figs. 10 and 11). This was affirmed by 99% of the respondents from different communities, as shown in Table 6.

Table 6

Impact of crude oil Pollution on livelihood in Ogoniland
Description of livelihood activities	Yes		No		Total
Description of livelihood activities	Counts	%	Counts	%	No
Do you have family members that fish	209	77.70	60	22.30	269
Fishing is the main livelihood activity	114	42.38	155	57.62	269
Do the fish smell/taste oil	236	90.77	24	9.23	260
Farming the main/only livelihood	154	57.25	115	42.75	269
Oil contamination changed livelihood	241	89.59	28	10.41	269
Oil contamination affected farming	246	91.45	23	8.55	269
Contamination affected crop yield	258	99.23	2	0.77	260

INSERT Table 6

INSERT FIGURE 10

INSERT FIGURE 11

Nearly all 30 respondents from each community except Buan, reported that oil contamination had affected their farming practices negatively (Fig. 12). This could be due to the sparse nature of contamination in Buan community. Also, the majority of oil infrastructures in the Buan community are distant from farmland, and as a result, oil spills often affect those in close proximity (Sam et al., 2017).

Ejiba et al. (2016) argued that oil pollution in the Niger Delta had negatively impacted the population, causing damage to the livelihoods (mostly farming and fishing) in the communities. Oil pollution makes households more vulnerable and impact their wellbeing. Albert et al. (2018) indicated that the immediate environment suffers more than 90% environmental and socio-economic degradation. Furthermore, it is recognized that not every adaptation strategy works for every community. Adaptation strategy is therefore community specific, based on their livelihood strengths and options (Vincent–Akpu and Annor-Frempong 2017).

Similarly, Blythe et al. (2014) identified two livelihood strategies adopted by threatened coastal communities in Mozambique including intensification of fishing efforts and diversification. In Ogoni communities, they adapt to the oil pollution of their environment by intensifying their fishing by going farther into the sea. They also diversify their livelihoods and migrate to other cities for work due to urban pull factors.

INSERT FIGURE 12

Livelihood Adaptations in Ogoni

To earn a living, respondents reported that they have developed alternative livelihoods for themselves. These alternative livelihoods include transportation businesses on motorbikes (locally called “okada riding”), trading, and artisanship. ‘Community members stated that they sometimes have to sell their land to buy the motor bike’ Some respondents commented that some of their community members have moved to urban centers to do menial jobs. The women’s group explained that their boys used to go fishing in the river, but they cannot find anymore. They go farther into the sea to fish, exposing them to the hazards of the high seas (Sam and Zabbey, 2018). The women used to pick periwinkle and cut mangrove, but they can no longer do so because the creeks became polluted and the mangroves have degraded (Fig. 9). The women engage in tailoring, hairdressing, petty trading, and prostitution and serve as labourers in other people's farms. While the youth are involved in mason, okada riding, and criminal activities. Members from Luere Beeri mainly engage in mat-making (from screw pine, Pandunus candelabrum), and this is one of their ancestral professions.

Improvised alternatives are not always sustainable and legitimate. Some community members are engaged in unsustainable sources of livelihood that are prone to crime. For example, several coastal communities are involved in artisanal refining, also known locally as “kpo fire” – a small scale crude method of boiling hydrocarbons at different temperatures to derive kerosene, petrol, and diesel with significant waste release into the environment. This trade exacerbates the impacts of the an already contaminated environment. The artisanal refining industry seems to have grown and attracted investors across stakeholder groups, and it is a potential factor that would affect a meaningful and sustainable clean-up exercise. Some communities are involved in the act and consider it a veritable alternative to a legitimate livelihood such as farming or fishing (Komi et al., 2019). For example, many communities have given social license to those involved in artisanal crude oil refining activities in efforts to engender alternative livelihood systems (Sam et al., 2022). Thus, as an aftermath of socio-economic impacts, increased artisanal refineries are one of the indicators that would indicate the success of remediation and restoration interventions in Ogoniland and the wider Niger Delta region. In addition, there is a high likelihood of re-polluting remediated land if the issue of artisanal refining is sufficiently addressed prior to clean-up activities. The problem of re-pollution from artisanal refining sites is a serious concern to all stakeholders within and outside the communities (Sam et al., 2022).

The proposal to issue licenses for modular refineries promised by the government of Nigeria could be a welcomed development for the people of Ogoni (Onuah, et al., 2017). They considered the modular refinery as important as the cleanup process. A modular refinery is a prefabricated refinery constructed in modules and connected together by interstitial piping to form an easily manageable structure. This preference as well as the community involvement are symptoms of a feeling shared by communities that the oil wealth is not benefiting them, but rather impoverishing them while profiting others.

Waste Disposal

In generally, communities lack designated dump sites for their waste, which is mostly made-up domestic materials that they deposit on farms and the non-biodegradable are burned or collected by waste pickers (scavengers). There is therefore a concern that hazardous waste generation will increase exponentially during the cleanup exercise and that such waste will be disposed of in burrow pits.

The possibility also exists that contractors undertaking the cleanup might acquire or lease landed properties from landowners for the purpose of hazardous waste disposal. However, 92% of respondents in the household survey indicated that they have not been approached to lease their land properties. Increased waste generation is expected, and a specialized waste collection and management infrastructure could indicate metrics to be considered as baselines for sustainable waste management systems.

With the confidence that the Nigerian Government intends to undertake a sustainable remediation and restoration intervention in Ogoniland and the Niger Delta region, it became imperative to provide a baseline or reference threshold for socio-economic parameters in Ogoniland. The study concludes that the socio-economic landscape of the Ogoni people, their livelihood, and the quality of their lives have been compromised. Thus, there is a need for the immediate provision of potable drinking water, and the establishment of an integrated water supply system to Ogoni communities as well as promotion of the provision of alternative livelihoods for all Ogoni communities. Livelihoods of local communities have been altered, and the environment has lost value for fishing, farming, and comfort. Any intervention in this area should take a comprehensive approach to developing and managing water supplies for the multiple uses and livelihood restoration. This is particularly important as government has begun survey for provision of potable drinking water to local communities in the area. Re-pollution is the single major challenge of the Ogoni cleanup; the government should therefore prioritize training and re-training of artisanal refiners in sustainable skills to reduce their impact on the cleanup process, despite the promotion of modular refineries. Adequate waste management systems should be put in place in the communities because huge amounts of waste will be generated during the cleanup. It is expected that this study would be used as a reference material to measure the successes of the remediation and restoration processes in Ogoniland.

Acknowledgement

The authors appreciate the efforts of the Centre for Environment, Human Rights and Development (CEHRD), for granting the permission to publish the datasets. Collection of the data was funded by the Catholic Organisation for Relief and Development Aid (CORDAID). We are thankful to Isabelle Gilles (LKL International Consulting Inc. Montreal, Canada) whom CEHRD hired to lead the Ogoniland impact study. Prof. Charles Tobin and Dr. Mina Whyte were part of the baseline study team.

Author contribution:

Kabari Sam, Nenibarini Zabbey: conceptualization, methodology, visualization, investigation, supervision, writing original draft preparation, review, and editing. Writing—review and editing Vincent-Akpu, I.F., Komi, G., Onagbodor, P.O., and Babatunde, B.B.

Data availability: Datasets collected and analyzed during the current study have been used and cold be shared without restriction. No addition data to be shared for the purpose of this publication.

Declarations, Ethics approval and consent to participate: Duly obtained from participants

Consent for publication: Not applicable.

Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests. All data used in the research are here published.

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Socio-economic Baseline for oil-impacted communities in Ogoniland: Towards a Restoration Framework in Niger Delta, Nigeria.

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Introduction