The Niger Delta, in southern Nigeria, is one of the most significant oil-producing regions in the world. It spans over 70,000 square kilometres and is also an area of great biodiversity, including mangroves, swamps and rainforests. However, the region has been plagued by severe environmental pollution for decades, primarily due to extensive oil exploration and production activities.
By 2010, between 9 million and 13 million barrels were estimated to have been spilt in the Niger Delta since 1958. From 1976 to 2018, a total of 17,301 spills occurred, dumping nearly three million barrels of oil into the environment.
Between February and April 2020, dead fish washed up on parts of the Niger Delta’s Atlantic coastline in unusually large numbers. The Unumherin community in Delta State experienced this in March that year.
