Environmental Degradation of Niger Delta Basin Area: The Impacts of Oil and Gas Exploration and Exploitation on Inhabitants and the Effects on the changing climate, South-south Nigeria

Abstract

Climate change has been a serious Pandemic to humanity traced to hydrocarbon exploration, exploitation, refining, distribution, marketing, burning of fossil fuel and subsequent release of potent greenhouse gases that have severely polluted the Environmental space. This has further made man’s habitation on earth to be non-conducive with earth temperature that keeps rising unpredictably and uncontrollably. Fossil fuel has been the major source of carbon emission through the various media of the air we breath, the land we cultivate our food, the water we drink, the rivers that replenish our aquifers and more recently, the transportation apparatus that moves man around. This has led to biodiversity loss, series of cancer and other respiratory diseases, especially on the vulnerable children and women. Obviously, this assessment has shown the need for real solutions with nations globally embracing clean sources of renewable energy to ameliorate this Pandemic. Compressed natural gas vehicles, electric cars, solar appliances, wind energy, biomass, hydroelectric sources of energy are some of the alternatives that are crucial to make the earth more habitable for mankind.  The Niger Deltas area is a typical example with vast hydrocarbon reserve which as at 2024 stood at 37.50 billion barrels for Oil and Condensate and 209.26 trillion standard cubic feet of gas deposit reserve. The total volume of crude oil produced for the year 2024 was 578,521,740 barrels. The daily average production of about 1,580,369 barrels within the time interval has just risen to about 1,700,000 barrels, all with attendant environmental menace. The high oil and gas production capacity of the Basin area has led to unprecedented and severe contamination of the ecosystem. In essence, contributing significantly to global warming. This study therefore elucidates the environmental condition of the area and therefore conclusively suggest more modern mitigative and adaptative approach like CO2 sequestration and renewable energy to reduce the impacts of oil and gas production in an area where millions call home.