ABUJA, Nigeria — The Nigerian Bodo community is taking Shell to court. Natives of the Niger Delta, the Bodo people are incensed at the fossil fuel giant after two disastrous oil spills crippled the nation’s economy.
In 2008, a Shell pipeline erupted twice, oozing copious amounts of oil into the surrounding community. These incidents are projected to cost billions in cleanup costs and take close to 30 years to completely repair. In 2011, Shell offered a concession for the damage and promised to work with the Bodo community to restore the vast forest and wetlands devastated by these unfortunate events.
“From the outset, we’ve accepted responsibility for the two operational spills in Bodo in 2008,” the managing director of Shell Nigeria reiterated in a public statement. “They’re deeply regrettable operational accidents, and they absolutely should not have happened.”
However, the Bodo community is dissatisfied with Shell’s proposed compensatory relief package and plans to garner substantially more in court. The Nigerians have allied with the powerful English firm Leigh Day as the case is set to be tried in the British High Court.
According to Martin Day, a senior partner at the firm, Shell offered close to $50 million in relief to compensate those affected by the disaster. However, communal leaders have publically rejected this sum, claiming it to be terribly insufficient compared to the substantial loss of annual income suffered by the local fishermen impacted by the spills.
Consequently, the Ogoniland natives are suing the Company, and they believe they have a compelling case: The ill-fated pipeline was over fifty years old at the time of the accidents, and Shell repeatedly disregarded workers’ demands to have it replaced. In addition, the Nigerians claim to have math on their side as well. In a statement released by Day, the firm estimates that fisherman in Niger Delta earn anywhere from $5,000 to $8,000 a year, numbers that adds up to well over $50 million when the entire work force is taken into account over the fiver year hiatus.
“Our clients know how much their claims are worth and will not be bought off cheaply,” said Day.
Unfortunately, this isn’t the only legal issue demanding clarification regarding Shell’s operations in the African nation. Sabotage efforts by locals are frequent, as many citizens raid Shell facilities with hopes of profiting off stolen oil. Yet, these illegal endeavors frequently result in broken pipelines and the malfunctioning of other vital equipment. Consequently, frequent oil spills have become a troubling reality for the Bodo people. Shell is eager to exonerate itself in court from any guilt associated with this all-to-common crime that plagues the Niger Delta.
Yet, Shell’s representatives will have to focus on the trial at hand. Being set in the English high court, the Bodo Community hopes the case will garner considerable media attention from the western world. To many Nigerian environmentalists, like Nnimmo Bassey, the initial anemic offer was a product of the nation’s lack of influence and access to powerful news outlets. Consequently, she believes the trial’s location may force Shell to rethink their strategy.
“It is a big shame on Shell that they are unwilling to pay a fraction of their profit as compensation after subjecting the people and the environment to such unthinkable harm they would not dare allow in their home country,” Bassey told The Guardian.
Yet, the Bogo community won’t be deterred easily, as their livelihoods depend on the outcome. Seeing the river and countryside drowned in oil only serves as a depressing reminder of why the country’s past relationship with Shell must be changed.
Sources: The Guardian, The Guardian(2), blue&green tomorrow
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