By: Gerald Barekye
Worth Noting:
- Human lives in oil affected communities are also crying due to the government failure to give them fair compensation towards taking over their land .For example this week the media reported that 78% of the people affected persons have been compensated which is a good turn up but my worry is about the remaining 22% who were cheated and denied proper compensation to their properties.
- When I interacted with some individuals they said due to dissatisfaction from total energies regarding to unfair compensation, they decided to run to court of which they have been denied judgment and the government is putting up cut off dates before people receive their compensation.
The 2008 National oil and gas policy in Uganda requires oil companies to exploit natural resources in a manner that conserves and protect environment and biodiversity, it requires the government to establish oil spill prevention response systems designed to minimize the negative impacts to human health and environment from oil spill.
This motivated me to run to Albertine region where preparation for extraction of oil is taking place .A lot of activities are underway that includes road construction ,facilities and drilling sites among others .All these activities have left the environment in the area exposed to climate changes due to destruction of green vegetation to create path ways for the oil production processes .
All these infrastructures pass through wildlife conservation areas, water sources and many large amounts of lands and vegetation used by wildlife have been destroyed. Uganda’s tourism sector has been one of the leading sectors that supports the economy but oil extraction has negatively affected the environmental protected areas which houses wildlife .It should be noted that tourists come to the country to experience nature in all its beauty and oil tanks, power poles and noisy compressors and busy roads are not what they expect to see when they come.
Too much noise ,air pollution and damaged landscapes welcomes one in Albertine region which negatively affect the tourism sector .In addition these activities have negatively affected local communities that depend on tourism for living .Oil and gas extractions is a very big destructor to wildlife the noise ,human movements and vehicles have disrupted animals communication ,breeding and nesting for birds and power lines ,fences , roads have fragmented habitats for many species .
Human lives in oil affected communities are also crying due to the government failure to give them fair compensation towards taking over their land .For example this week the media reported that 78% of the people affected persons have been compensated which is a good turn up but my worry is about the remaining 22% who were cheated and denied proper compensation to their properties.
When I interacted with some individuals they said due to dissatisfaction from total energies regarding to unfair compensation, they decided to run to court of which they have been denied judgment and the government is putting up cut off dates before people receive their compensation. In 2012 the government gave people affected persons two choices one of them was to take up option of land for land and government committed to buy land depending on the family need handling on case by case at an individual basis and others opted for cash.
In 2016 the people who opted for land to land was told they are to be taken somewhere and when they reached they found they were to be taken in one place which contradicts to what they had agreed on .This have left many people in fear of their lives and exposed to dangers that may arise due to compacted areas they are forced to stay in that come along with many health risks.
Therefore as Uganda prepares for its first oil in 2025, it should first take the initiative of sensitizing communities about dangers that may come along with oil activities for example the oil affected communities have no idea about the oil spill that may happen during oil production process since it has always happened everywhere. For example the Kibiro oil spill that happened in 2020 in Hoima district should act as eye opener for the government to plan and put up mitigation measures incase oil spills happen.
The government should begin awareness campaigns to make sure communities understand things like oil spill and how it can be handled in case it happens because oil spill is a disaster like any other disasters which can happen at any time of the day .The districts should be supported to develop oil and gas contingent plan and sensitize all communities around oil production in their local language.
The environmental social impact assessment report that was done by oil companies indicated oil spills as one of the dangerous risks in the EACOP projects and no attention is being given to that. The companies should come up with proper mitigation plan with proper timeframe and budget in response to oil spill in case it happens .The measures have to be clear and understood by the neighboring communities to protect them from such damages .Since the pipeline will pass through lakes, rivers, swamps proper measures should be put in place to protect the ecosystem and environment at large.
Gerald Barekye
Director Centre for environmental research and agriculture Innovations
Felix Njenga