Abstract:
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) oil pipeline project has left its mark in form of environmental problems in some Masev Communities of Benue State. An extensive area of prime agricultural land has been affected. Spilled petroleum oil is certainly responsible for alterations of soil physico-chemical properties. From five selected communities which had experienced oil spill, twenty four soil samples were collected at oil spill sites at depth 0-15 cm (surface soils) and twenty four others at depth 15-30cm (subsoils). A similar exercise of soil sample collection was done at three selected sites from three communities, within the same geographical area, unaffected by oil spill. Soil chemical and physical property analysis was carried out in the Benue State Water Board Laboratory Makurdi for the affected and non-affected areas to assess the extent to which the soil in the affected areas had been affected by the project. The results of the tests were analyzed using some statistical methods. The result of the analysis showed that the soils in the affected areas were significantly contaminated by oil spillage from the NNPC pipeline and this, in turn had affected the agricultural productivity and biodiversity within the communities. The laboratory results were based on FEPA standards. It has been suggested that there is an utmost necessity to take some perfect steps either to control or to minimize the petroleum oil pollution in this area. |
