Reps Decry Delay In Addressing Bille Gas Leak, Summon Key Agencies, Rivers Govt

The House of Representatives Committee on the South-South Development Commission (SSDC), has expressed deep concern over what it described as the slow pace of efforts to address the persistent gas leak in Bille Community, Degema Local Government Area of Rivers State, warning that the prolonged environmental disaster poses a serious threat to the survival of the affected residents.

The lawmakers lamented that despite the incident being reported several months ago, there has been little tangible action to contain the leak or provide emergency relief to the community, whose residents now face severe environmental pollution, health risks and the destruction of their traditional means of livelihood.

At an interactive session at the National Assembly, the Committee summoned the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA), the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), the Rivers State Government, Degema Local Government Council and representatives of the Bille Community to jointly chart a path towards resolving the lingering crisis.

Chairman of the Committee, Hon. Julius Pondi, issued the directive following a motion urging the immediate relocation of residents pending the containment of the gas leak, which NOSDRA confirmed is still ongoing.

Speaking during the session, Pondi said the meeting was convened to thoroughly examine the circumstances surrounding the unusual gas leak in Bille Community and determine the appropriate legislative and regulatory response.

He noted that incidents of gas leaks are matters of grave national concern, particularly in communities whose economies depend largely on fishing, farming and other natural resources that are highly vulnerable to environmental degradation.

“As representatives of the Nigerian people, we have a constitutional responsibility to ensure that operators in the oil and gas sector conduct their activities in compliance with existing laws, environmental regulations and international best practices, while guaranteeing that host communities are adequately protected from avoidable environmental and safety hazards,” he said.

According to him, the interactive session was designed to provide a platform for all relevant stakeholders to present factual accounts of the incident, explain the immediate response measures taken, assess the environmental, public health, social and economic consequences of the disaster, and identify both immediate and long-term interventions required to safeguard the affected community.

Pondi explained that the Committee intends to establish both the immediate and underlying causes of the gas leak, determine whether there were breaches of statutory obligations, regulatory requirements or operational standards, and assess whether the response by the operating company and relevant government agencies was timely and adequate.

“We shall evaluate the adequacy and timeliness of the emergency response with a view to determining whether sufficient measures were taken to protect lives, public health and the environment.

“In addition, we are interested in establishing the current status of compensation for affected persons, environmental remediation efforts and ecological restoration in the impacted areas.

“Equally important is our responsibility to assess the broader social and economic consequences of the incident on the people of Bille Community, whose livelihoods and well-being may have been severely affected.

“We also expect updates on medical interventions provided to affected residents, relief measures implemented and ongoing community support initiatives where applicable.”

He stressed that the Committee’s objective was not to apportion blame without due process but to establish the facts, identify operational and regulatory lapses where necessary, ensure accountability and recommend practical measures to strengthen environmental governance and improve public safety.

“Our findings will guide appropriate legislative, regulatory and policy recommendations aimed at preventing the recurrence of similar incidents, promoting responsible resource development, strengthening institutional accountability and advancing sustainable development across the South-South region,” he added.

Pondi further described the South-South as the economic backbone of Nigeria, emphasizing that development in the region must be environmentally sustainable, socially responsible and beneficial to the host communities whose natural resources contribute immensely to national development.

Providing an update on the incident, a Director at the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA), Cyrus Nkangwung, disclosed that the gas leak, first reported on October 25, 2025, is still active.

He described the incident as an extremely rare phenomenon because the gas was not emanating from any known oil installation but was naturally bubbling from beneath the ground, with devastating consequences for water sources, farming activities and other livelihoods within the community.

Nkangwung informed the Committee that in February this year, the agency wrote to President Bola Tinubu through the Minister of Environment requesting the release of about ₦3.4 billion to tackle the emergency.

However, he admitted that despite ongoing investigations, the exact cause of the gas leak has yet to be determined.

“This is not a normal occurrence in the oil industry. What we are witnessing is gas bubbling directly from the ground, and investigations are still ongoing to establish the source,” he said.

Also speaking, a member of the Committee, Hon. Dumnamene Dekor, expressed disappointment that nearly nine months after the incident was reported, residents of Bille Community were still living under dangerous conditions without adequate government intervention.

Dekor, who also chairs the House Committee on Host Communities, said it was unacceptable that oil-producing communities continued to bear the burden of environmental disasters while contributing immensely to the nation’s economy.

“Those who lay the golden eggs should not continue to suffer for producing the resources that sustain the entire country,” he said, calling for urgent action to protect lives and restore the affected environment.

On his part, a representative of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Joseph Ogunsola, described the Bille gas leak as a novel occurrence within Nigeria’s petroleum industry.

He explained that the unusual nature of the incident had made it difficult for experts to immediately determine the volume and extent of the gas leakage.

Ogunsola, however, said the Commission became aware of the incident in February 2026 and has since been collaborating with other relevant agencies and stakeholders to identify the source of the leak and develop appropriate remedial measures.