A renowned environmental activist and Director of Health of Mother Earth Foundation, Dr Nnimmo Bassey, has called for urgent environmental and health audits across the Niger Delta, warning that abandoned oil facilities and unchecked pollution have turned the region into an ecological disaster zone.

Bassey who holds a National honour of Member of Order of Federal Republic made the call on Monday while delivering an address at the 2026 Correspondents’ Week of the Nigerian Union of Journalists in Port Harcourt

The theme is: “The Imperatives of Comprehensive Cleanup of the Niger Delta Environment: Role of the Media.”

He traced the roots of environmental degradation in the Niger Delta to colonial-era oil exploitation, noting that oil exploration in Nigeria began under Shell D’Arcy in 1937 when the entire country was treated as a single oil bloc.

According to him, the exploitative system established during colonial rule laid the foundation for decades of environmental neglect and reckless extraction.

The environmentalist described the Niger Delta as one of the world’s most devastated oil-producing regions, alleging that nearly 260,000 barrels of crude oil are spilled annually, equivalent to an Exxon Valdez-scale disaster every year.

He cited several reports documenting the ecological crisis, including the Niger Delta Environmental Survey conducted between 1991 and 1997, the 2011 United Nations Environment Programme assessment of Ogoniland, and the 2023 Bayelsa State Oil and Environment Commission report titled “An Environmental Genocide.”

Bassey also referenced a 2024 report by Kebetkache Women Development and Resource Centre, which found traces of petroleum hydrocarbons in women from Otuabagi community in Bayelsa State.

He warned that abandoned oil infrastructure across the Niger Delta now constitutes “ecological time bombs,” citing incidents such as the 2021 Aiteo well blowout in Nembe, Bayelsa State, the prolonged Ororo-1 oil well fire off Ondo State, and ongoing gas emissions in Bille community in Rivers State.

According to him, many of the facilities that should have been decommissioned remain unattended despite existing Nigerian laws requiring oil companies to dismantle obsolete infrastructure in line with international standards.

Bassey accused oil companies of manipulating public perception through aggressive media relations while shifting blame for spills to local communities. He urged journalists to independently investigate incidents rather than relying solely on official narratives from oil firms and regulators.

“The media has the duty and capacity to report the ecocide happening in the Niger Delta factually and in real time,” he said, adding that environmental crimes are often underreported.

He further criticised oil divestment arrangements involving international oil companies, arguing that they allow polluters to evade responsibility for decades of environmental damage.

Bassey endorsed resolutions reached at the 5th Niger Delta Alternatives Convergence, including demands for an immediate declaration of a state of environmental emergency in the Niger Delta, comprehensive environmental audits, decommissioning of abandoned oil facilities, payment of reparations to affected communities, and an end to routine gas flaring.

He lamented that life expectancy in parts of the Niger Delta remains as low as 41 years, insisting that relief materials alone cannot address the long-term effects of pollution and environmental degradation.

The activist commended the Nigerian Union of Journalists for championing the campaign for environmental restoration in the region, stressing that silence in the face of ecological destruction would amount to betrayal of future generations.