Experts attribute earth tremour in Bayelsa,Rivers communities to explosives used for oil exploration

 Experts attribute earth tremour in Bayelsa,Rivers communities to explosives used for oil exploration

Some experts have attributed reported cases of earth tremour in some communities in Bayelsa to increased use of explosives in oil and gas exploration and production by oil firms.

Communities in River and Bayelsa within oilfields operated by Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) on July 14 reported witnessing vibrations described as Earth tremor.

Some of the affected areas visited by NAN include Igbogene and Akenfa in Bayelsa as well as Akinima, Oruama, One Man Country and Mbiama in Rivers.

A visit o the Bayelsa Ministry of Environment to ascertain the response of the state government to the recent incident, it was gathered that the government was yet to react.

“It is not possible to give you any form of formal reaction for now, the Ministry does not have any Commissioner or Substantive Permanent Secretary and you know our limitations as civil servants, I lack the powers to comment,” an official said.

Also  checks at State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) in Bayelsa showed that the agency was yet to respond to the incident due to paucity of funds.

It was gathered that the agency is still planng to go for an assessment of the areas affected by the recent earth tremor in the state.

Mr Angus Lurgard, Agency’s Director told NAN that the incident was worrisome.

Lurgard explained that SEMA have not been able to go for the assessment because of lack of fund.

“SEMA is aware of the incident; we have plans to commence assessment on the affected area; we have not been able to do anything because we are facing financial challenge; lack of fund is a problem to our activities in the state.

“SEMA is responsible for emergency management, we need support from both public and private sectors to enable us function effectively,” Lugard said.

.

On likely cause of the incident, the Director attributed it oil exploration and production activities by multinational companies operating near the affected communities.

According to Dr Tamunu Ebipadei, Senior Lecturer at Department of Geography and Environmental Management, Niger Delta University (NDU), said there are two main causes of earth tremor.

“Firstly earth tremours can be linked to use of explosives which leads to volcanic eruptions; they are in fact very common in areas of volcanic activity like the oil and gas sector where the use of explosives for seismic data acquisition.

“The search for oil depends largely on use of dynamites and other explosives with accompanies eruptions in seismic activities .

"Secondly, earth tremours can be triggered by tectonic activity associated with plate margins and faults, and you find that in the Pacific region, that part of the world is the most seismically and volcanically active zone.

“So for this second type the country stands a slim chance by nature of our geography in the world " he said.

He said earth tremour occurs prior to earthquake in an area.

Ebipadei regretted that uncontrolled and indiscriminate seismic data acquisition often embarked by oil firms in bid to discover oil reserves poses a threat to the oil rich Niger Delta region.

He advised government to prevail on urges oil and companies to stop using explosive that can cause earth tremor and ensure that operations are carried out in an environmentally sustainable manner.

He also said that areas with mining activities near mountainous areas are prone to earth tremor as well.

Also officials of the environment focused rights group Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN) in Bayelsa, had conducted an assessment tour of the affected areas in Bayelsa and parts of Rivers.

.

Mr Alagoa Morris, Head of Field Operations at the NGO said the last occurrence took place two years ago in Freetown, Ikarama 1 & 2 in Okordia clan in Yenagoa Local Government Area in Bayelsa.

Morris called for an investigation by relevant panel of experts to quantify and analyse the risks posed to the environment and residents in the affected areas.

He said that the Health, Safety and Environmental standards in the oilfields were often ignored by the oil industry operators leading to frequent accidents that claim human lives.

“I can recall that within the past one year 17 people have died in explosions within oilfields operated by one company alone.

“That speaks volumes of the safety standards and records of International Oil Companies operating in Bayelsa,” Morris said

Though, what may have triggered the tremor has yet to be established, some indigenes and environmentalist have linked it to intense seismic and oil exploration activities undertaken by SPDC in the area over the years.

Residents have called on government and relevant agencies to look into the incident with a view to ascertaining the real cause and prevent future occurrences to avert any disaster.

Mr Joseph Obari, an SPDC spokesman, when contacted to react on the development and concerns over the operational safety procedure at its fields said that he was on vacation and hence cannot respond.

Also Mr Precious Okolobo, Media Relations Manager at SPDC declined comments on the development as well as concerns of experts and residents near its operations.