By Egufe Yafugborhi

PORT HARCOURT—AGGE communities, traversing Delta and Bayelsa states, have alleged “deliberate delay” by National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency, NOSDRA, to promptly intervene on reported pollution caused by an oil spillage in the communities.

In a statement by Arthur Bendiwei, Chairman Agge Community Development Council, CDC, in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, yesterday, the Agge people said that they noticed the spill involving a Shell Petroleum Development Company, SPDC, pipeline.

When contacted, however, Felicity Ngozi, Zonal Director of the Warri Zonal Office of NOSDRA declined comment, claiming innocence of the subject, whereas spokesperson for SPDC, Joseph Obari, said, “We would release a statement on it shortly.”

The community said: “Agge and its Federated Communities were woken up to SPDC’s pollution of our communities on 17/5/2018 from the Trans-Ramos Pipeline at a point near Amazor community in Ekeremor Local Government Area of Bayelsa State.

“The CDC  immediately in writing, notified NOSDRA, SPDC and other regulators including Ministries of Environment of Delta and Bayelsa states, urging NOSDRA to promptly order a Joint Investigation Visit, JIV, to verify cause of the oil spill, delineate polluted landscape and measure the volume spilled while immediately calling for clean up.

“Five days into the oil spillage, beginning from the 17/5/2018, neither the regulatory agencies nor SPDC deemed it fit to visit the spill point to stop the flow of the crude or do anything to assuage the plight of our grossly polluted communities.”