YEAC-Nigeria Calls For Urgent Clean-Up Of Polluted Niger Delta Coastal Waters

The Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre (YEAC-Nigeria) has called on the federal government and international oil companies to urgently accelerate the clean-up and remediation of polluted coastal waters in the Niger Delta.

The group made the appeal in a statement issued in Port Harcourt by its Executive Director, Dr. Fyneface Dumnamene Fyneface, to mark the 2026 World Oceans Day themed: “Reimagine: Beyond the world we know, a new relationship with our ocean.”

Fyneface said the call aligns with key recommendations of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) report on Ogoniland (2011) and the Bayelsa State Oil and Environmental Commission report (2023), both of which highlighted the scale of environmental degradation in the region.

He urged the federal government, Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA), Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP), as well as oil companies to step up remediation efforts and ensure accountability in oil spill management.

According to him, stakeholders must also support community-led marine protection initiatives, including mangrove restoration projects aimed at protecting biodiversity and restoring fish populations across affected coastal areas.

YEAC-Nigeria further called for stronger monitoring and enforcement mechanisms to curb oil spills, marine pollution and environmental degradation, warning that weak penalties continue to worsen the crisis.

The group also advocated the implementation of a Niger Delta modular refinery and livelihood transition plan to provide legal and sustainable alternatives to illegal refining activities.

It also backed the institutionalisation of PACORDI, a proposed multi-stakeholder framework aimed at addressing artisanal refining, organised crime and pollution across Nigeria and the Gulf of Guinea.

Fyneface urged citizens, civil society organisations and the media to use the occasion of World Oceans Day to reflect on the need for environmental protection, stressing that safeguarding the ocean is critical to securing the future of coastal communities.