Some indigenes of Ogoniland in Rivers State have lamented that their fish and periwinkles are still being laced with oil spills despite the ongoing clean-up by the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project.

The fisherfolk, drawn from Gbee, K-Dere and Nweemuu communities, spoke at a multi-stakeholder dialogue with the theme, ‘Restoring Rivers, Reviving Livelihoods, Renewing Lives’, held at Kpor, headquarters of Gokana Local Government Area of Rivers State, on Wednesday.

The programme attracted participants from several fishing communities in Ogoni, representatives of HYPREP, the University of Port Harcourt, civil society organisations, the Nigeria Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency, youths, women and other stakeholders.

In their different presentations, some of the affected persons; Chief Nadabel John, Chief Emmanuel Pii and Madam Grace Namon, expressed worry that their farmlands, vegetation and water bodies are still laden with oil spills.

They added, “Our fish and periwinkles still have the smell of crude oil when we catch and cook them for consumption.”

In her address, the convener of the dialogue, Anuoluwapo Adelakun of the Pulitzer Centre for Crisis Reporting, stated that the dialogue was borne out of the findings of an investigation and the lamentations of the people, which showed an information gap between HYPREP and the local communities.

Adelakun, an investigative journalist, pointed out that the result of a report carried out in partnership with the University of Port Harcourt showed that the water sediments of the communities where the study took place still contain heavy metals such as nickel, a cancer-causing substance. She also stated that from the findings, fish such as tilapia have heavy concentrations of these metals.

She stated, “We came to Ogoniland to do very interesting studies on pollution, remediation and livelihoods. And this particular project placed emphasis on the rivers, wetlands, water bodies and the aquatic organisms, and their socio-ecological relationships and how it’s actually thriving.

“We took samples from Bodo, K-Dere, Gbee and Mogho. We took these samples because we discovered that people are still engaging with the water and the fish.

“They are still eating the fish despite the poison, and what we discovered when we took samples of the water and the periwinkles is that there are still extremely high levels of heavy metals, petroleum hydrocarbons in the fish through biocommunication. Basically, people who are eating the fish and periwinkles are likely to fall very ill in the long run, especially children.”

Adelakun observed that while HYPREP has reported 70 per cent mangrove restoration and about 20 per cent shoreline clean-up, families still eat contaminated seafood daily.

According to her, “Independent research conducted in collaboration with trusted academia at the University of Port Harcourt reveals that children eating fish in many parts of Ogoni face a high cancer risk, among other things.”

However, the Technical Assistant to the HYPREP Project Coordinator on Shoreline Clean-up, Peter Lenu, said it is not possible for seafood such as periwinkles to survive in an oil-polluted area.

He explained, “Talking about fish, especially periwinkles, that fisherfolk go to pick periwinkles laden in hydrocarbon, fresh crude oil, and then they literally have to wash it and take it home for eating — scientifically, you can’t find periwinkles in fresh hydrocarbon still alive. That is an area where we need to put the record straight.”

Lenu emphasised that the clean-up will take between 25 and 30 years, as contained in the United Nations Environment Programme report, adding that the intervention is ongoing.

Commenting on findings which stated that the Total Petroleum Hydrocarbon levels in one of the study locations were about 277.5 milligrams per kilogram, Lenu argued that the result shows a 98 per cent clean-up success.

“Scientifically, when you have been able to get that kind of result of 277.5 milligrams per kilogram for an area that was as contaminated as that, where the baseline values averaged over 20,000 milligrams per kilogram, that’s about 98 per cent success that has been recorded in that area. That is why I said significantly something has been done. But it’s a process,” he said.

The technical assistant mentioned that HYPREP is employing an Enhanced Natural Attenuation remediation process, which will take time.

Lenu informed that HYPREP has awarded second-phase contracts in five of the communities where concerns were raised, stating that the contracts are to commence before the end of the first quarter of 2026.

He also observed that Nweemuu, where the study was conducted, is a farming community, hence the possibility of contamination through rainfall into the river from fertilisers and pesticides.

He added that the health study currently being carried out by HYPREP with the World Health Organisation is to assess and monitor the impact of crude oil spills on the health of the Ogoni people.

“The shoreline clean-up is in phases. HYPREP has not started the clean-up in Bodo. The reason is that for Bodo, the Renaissance clean-up project covered a substantive part of that area. There are other parts that were missed, which HYPREP will address in another phase.

“For Gbee community, this is a second-phase job that has already been awarded. Before the end of the first quarter of 2026, that job will start. Concurrently, there are some areas in Gbee community that, from chemical observations, do not require shoreline clean-up. We can go ahead and plant mangroves in those areas while clean-up continues, especially in the artisanal refinery areas.

“For the first phase of mangrove planting, specifically in Bomu, it covers an area of 560 hectares. Over 1.5 million seedlings have been planted, and the mangroves are doing well.

“We still have over a hectare being cleaned, and once it has been certified clean by regulatory bodies, HYPREP will proceed with mangrove planting,” Lenu explained.