Chapter 8
Oil Pollution in Coastal Waters of Nigeria
Andrey G. Kostianoy, Olga Yu. Lavrova and Dmytro M. Solovyov
Abstract The petroleum industry in Nigeria has become the largest industry and
the main Gross Domestic Product (GDP) generator in Western Africa. Nigeria’s
proven oil reserves make Nigeria the most affluent country in Africa and the tenth
most petroleum-rich one in the world. The main oil fields are concentrated in and
around the Niger River Delta, which is seriously damaged by oil leakages. It has
been estimated that between 9 and 13 million barrels have been spilled since oil
drilling started in 1958. Between 1976 and 2001 the Government documented 6817
spills, but analysts suspect that the real number may be ten times higher. Little is
known about oil spills in the coastal zone of Nigeria, but offshore spills contaminate
coastal environments and cause a decline in local fishing production. We present a
general view on oil pollution in the coastal waters of Nigeria, based on the analysis
of historical information and recent Advanced Synthetic Aperture Radar (ASAR)
data, with a focus on the Bonga oil spill case study, which occurred on 20 December
2011.
8.1 Introduction
Since the late 1950s, when the British discovered oil in the Niger Delta, the petroleum
industry in Nigeria has become the largest industry and the main Gross Domestic
Product (GDP) generator in Western Africa (see Fig. 8.1). In 2000, oil and gas exports
in Nigeria accounted for 95 % of foreign exchange earnings, 65 % of Government
budgetary revenue, and 40 % of its GDP (Wikipedia 2012a). Nigeria’s proven oil
reserves, estimated by the US Energy Information Administration, vary between
16 and 22 billion barrels, but other sources raise this value to 35 billion barrels.
These reserves make Nigeria the most richest country in Africa and the tenth most
A. G. Kostianoy ()
P. P. Shirshov Institute of Oceanology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
e-mail: kostianoy@gmail.com
Also at: I. Kant Baltic Federal University, Kaliningrad, Russia
O. Y. Lavrova
Space Research Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
D. M. Solovyov
Marine Hydrophysical Institute, National Academy of Sciences, Sevastopol, Ukraine
V. Barale, M. Gade (eds.), Remote Sensing of the African Seas,
149
DOI 10.1007/978-94-017-8008-7_8,
© Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014
Oil Pollution in Coastal Waters of Nigeria
Andrey G. Kostianoy, Olga Yu. Lavrova and Dmytro M. Solovyov
Abstract The petroleum industry in Nigeria has become the largest industry and
the main Gross Domestic Product (GDP) generator in Western Africa. Nigeria’s
proven oil reserves make Nigeria the most affluent country in Africa and the tenth
most petroleum-rich one in the world. The main oil fields are concentrated in and
around the Niger River Delta, which is seriously damaged by oil leakages. It has
been estimated that between 9 and 13 million barrels have been spilled since oil
drilling started in 1958. Between 1976 and 2001 the Government documented 6817
spills, but analysts suspect that the real number may be ten times higher. Little is
known about oil spills in the coastal zone of Nigeria, but offshore spills contaminate
coastal environments and cause a decline in local fishing production. We present a
general view on oil pollution in the coastal waters of Nigeria, based on the analysis
of historical information and recent Advanced Synthetic Aperture Radar (ASAR)
data, with a focus on the Bonga oil spill case study, which occurred on 20 December
2011.
8.1 Introduction
Since the late 1950s, when the British discovered oil in the Niger Delta, the petroleum
industry in Nigeria has become the largest industry and the main Gross Domestic
Product (GDP) generator in Western Africa (see Fig. 8.1). In 2000, oil and gas exports
in Nigeria accounted for 95 % of foreign exchange earnings, 65 % of Government
budgetary revenue, and 40 % of its GDP (Wikipedia 2012a). Nigeria’s proven oil
reserves, estimated by the US Energy Information Administration, vary between
16 and 22 billion barrels, but other sources raise this value to 35 billion barrels.
These reserves make Nigeria the most richest country in Africa and the tenth most
A. G. Kostianoy ()
P. P. Shirshov Institute of Oceanology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
e-mail: kostianoy@gmail.com
Also at: I. Kant Baltic Federal University, Kaliningrad, Russia
O. Y. Lavrova
Space Research Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
D. M. Solovyov
Marine Hydrophysical Institute, National Academy of Sciences, Sevastopol, Ukraine
V. Barale, M. Gade (eds.), Remote Sensing of the African Seas,
149
DOI 10.1007/978-94-017-8008-7_8,
© Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014