past work: nigeria: niger delta

For the past 50 years oil has spilled onto the land of the Niger Delta destroying wildlife habitats, farmland and waterways. Most of the spillage can be attributed to sabotage by rebels in the region but poor maintenance of equipment, oil heads and pipelines, running through these villages also cause significant damage to the lives of many Nigerians. People in the Delta exposed to these leaks have experienced severe skin irritations, nose sores, miscarriages as well as pollution to their water sources, damage to their homes and destruction of their farmland. Fisherman travel farther out to find unpolluted water but find themselves replacing nets frequently as they are ruined by the oil contaminated waters. The companies responsible for these spills attempt to cleanup but most Nigerians feel that the effort is not enough. The oil usually seeps through the sand and cement and the land still remains unusable. The people of the Niger Delta understand that many countries have experienced spills of great magnitude but very few people know about the constant pollution they deal with everyday.