•Water tap
Environmental experts have raised concerns over growing cases of water contamination linked to oil exploration and mining activities in parts of the country.
They warned that affected communities may face loss of potable water sources, fish deaths, crop damage, and rising health challenges tied to polluted water, reports Saturday Guardian.
The warning comes amid fears that Nigeria could experience environmental and social consequences similar to major global pollution disasters if urgent preventive and response measures are not strengthened.
According to the experts, similar environmental patterns have been recorded in previous disasters worldwide, including dam failures in Brazil, recurring oil spills in the Niger Delta, industrial contamination in Minamata Bay in Japan, and the 2008 toxic ash spill in the United States.
They blamed the severity of most environmental disasters on delayed response, weak coordination among government institutions, and limited transparency in the management of affected communities.
The experts stressed that simplified compensation systems, independent mediation, and strong community participation remain critical to effective recovery efforts, warning that poor communication, fragmented institutional responsibilities, and bureaucratic delays often worsen environmental damage.
They cited the 2015 collapse of the Fundão dam in Mariana, Brazil, as a major lesson, noting that poor coordination and delayed governance structures contributed to prolonged environmental and social impacts on host communities.
An environmental and international law specialist, Dr. Bell Ivanesciuc, noted that environmental disasters are often worsened by institutional failures rather than technical causes alone.
“Every disaster has a technical component, but the failure is almost always institutional. When prevention, oversight, and response structures do not function in a coordinated way, the damage expands. What we see in Nigeria is very similar to the early stages of the Mariana case,” she said.
She warned that absence of clear governance frameworks and transparent decision-making processes could delay compensation and recovery for affected communities.
“If clear governance, decision-making flows, and public transparency are not established from the outset, reparations will take years and the population will be the last to be served,” she added.
Also, a specialist in sustainable finance and corporate governance, Sandra Aparecida de Oliveira Lima, highlighted the economic implications of environmental disasters, noting that delayed decisions on responsibility and financing structures often increase social and fiscal costs.
“Environmental disasters are not only environmental; they are economic. Every day of delay in defining responsibilities, metrics, and financing mechanisms increases social and fiscal impacts,” she said.
Lima stressed the need for independent and transparent funding mechanisms for environmental remediation, noting that without clear allocation and accountability systems, reparation promises may fail to translate into practical recovery.
She also emphasised the importance of including affected communities in decision-making processes, warning that excluding them could undermine reconstruction efforts.
