154
A. G. Kostianoy et al.
Water quality, breathing problems and skin lesions are the main health issues for
people living in the affected areas (Wikipedia 2012b). In April 1997, samples taken
from water used for drinking and washing by local villagers were analyzed in USA.
A sample from Luawii, in Ogoni, where there had been no oil production for four
years, had 18 ppm of hydrocarbons in the water, 360 times the level allowed in
drinking water in the European Union (E.U.). A sample from Ukpeleide, Ikwerre,
contained 34 ppm, 680 times the E.U. standard (Nwilo and Badejo 2007).
8.3 Major Oil Spill Incidents in Nigeria
Oil spillages in Nigeria are categorized into four groups: minor, medium, major and
disaster. The spill is classified as minor when the oil discharge is less than 25 barrels
in inland waters or less than 250 barrels on land, offshore or coastal waters and does
not pose a threat to the public health or welfare. Medium spill must be 250 barrels or
less in the inland water or 250–2,500 barrels on land, offshore and coastal water while
for the major spill, the discharge to the inland waters is in excess of 250 barrels on
land, offshore or coastal waters. The disaster refers to any uncontrolled well blowout,
pipeline rupture or storage tank failure which poses an imminent threat to the public
health or welfare (Nwilo and Badejo 2001, 2007; Egberongbe et al. 2006).
The largest individual oil spills in Nigeria include (Nwilo and Badejo 2001, 2007;
Egberongbe et al. 2006; Evoh 2009; Wikipedia 2012b):
• The Escravos spill in 1978, which involved about 300,000 barrels.
• In 1978 a failure of the Forcados Terminal tank (Royal Dutch Shell) produced a
spill of about 580,000 barrels (92,000 m
3 ).
• One of the most disastrous spill in Nigeria occurred on January 17, 1980 when
about 200,000 barrels spilled into the Atlantic Ocean from a Texaco facility and
destroyed 340 ha of mangroves.
• The blowout of a Texaco Funiwa-5 offshore station in 1980 which dumped an
estimated 400,000 barrels (64,000 m
3 ) of crude oil into the Gulf of Guinea.
• The 1982 Abudu pipeline oil spillage of 18,818 barrels.
• On 12 January 1998 an oil pipeline ruptured at Mobil-Idoho platform on the
inner shelf of the Atlantic coast of southeastern Nigeria releasing over 40,000
barrels (approximately 6,000 tones) of Qua Iboe light crude oil into the marine
environment over the next three days. Oil fire incident claimed about a thousand
lives and produced the spillage extending for more than 180 km to Lagos. More
than 700 km of the Nigerian coastline including estuaries were impacted.
• Finally, on 20 December 2011 the Shell’s Bonga offshore oil spill of 40,000
barrels resulted from the routine transfer of crude oil from the Bonga FPSO to a
waiting oil tanker, mentioned earlier.
Oil spill incidents of smaller size occur almost daily in Nigeria. We did not find a
statistics for marine oil spills separately, but there is an official statistics for all oil
spill incidents in the country provided by the Department of Petroleum Resources
A. G. Kostianoy et al.
Water quality, breathing problems and skin lesions are the main health issues for
people living in the affected areas (Wikipedia 2012b). In April 1997, samples taken
from water used for drinking and washing by local villagers were analyzed in USA.
A sample from Luawii, in Ogoni, where there had been no oil production for four
years, had 18 ppm of hydrocarbons in the water, 360 times the level allowed in
drinking water in the European Union (E.U.). A sample from Ukpeleide, Ikwerre,
contained 34 ppm, 680 times the E.U. standard (Nwilo and Badejo 2007).
8.3 Major Oil Spill Incidents in Nigeria
Oil spillages in Nigeria are categorized into four groups: minor, medium, major and
disaster. The spill is classified as minor when the oil discharge is less than 25 barrels
in inland waters or less than 250 barrels on land, offshore or coastal waters and does
not pose a threat to the public health or welfare. Medium spill must be 250 barrels or
less in the inland water or 250–2,500 barrels on land, offshore and coastal water while
for the major spill, the discharge to the inland waters is in excess of 250 barrels on
land, offshore or coastal waters. The disaster refers to any uncontrolled well blowout,
pipeline rupture or storage tank failure which poses an imminent threat to the public
health or welfare (Nwilo and Badejo 2001, 2007; Egberongbe et al. 2006).
The largest individual oil spills in Nigeria include (Nwilo and Badejo 2001, 2007;
Egberongbe et al. 2006; Evoh 2009; Wikipedia 2012b):
• The Escravos spill in 1978, which involved about 300,000 barrels.
• In 1978 a failure of the Forcados Terminal tank (Royal Dutch Shell) produced a
spill of about 580,000 barrels (92,000 m
3 ).
• One of the most disastrous spill in Nigeria occurred on January 17, 1980 when
about 200,000 barrels spilled into the Atlantic Ocean from a Texaco facility and
destroyed 340 ha of mangroves.
• The blowout of a Texaco Funiwa-5 offshore station in 1980 which dumped an
estimated 400,000 barrels (64,000 m
3 ) of crude oil into the Gulf of Guinea.
• The 1982 Abudu pipeline oil spillage of 18,818 barrels.
• On 12 January 1998 an oil pipeline ruptured at Mobil-Idoho platform on the
inner shelf of the Atlantic coast of southeastern Nigeria releasing over 40,000
barrels (approximately 6,000 tones) of Qua Iboe light crude oil into the marine
environment over the next three days. Oil fire incident claimed about a thousand
lives and produced the spillage extending for more than 180 km to Lagos. More
than 700 km of the Nigerian coastline including estuaries were impacted.
• Finally, on 20 December 2011 the Shell’s Bonga offshore oil spill of 40,000
barrels resulted from the routine transfer of crude oil from the Bonga FPSO to a
waiting oil tanker, mentioned earlier.
Oil spill incidents of smaller size occur almost daily in Nigeria. We did not find a
statistics for marine oil spills separately, but there is an official statistics for all oil
spill incidents in the country provided by the Department of Petroleum Resources