Niger Delta, Nigeria
The Niger Delta
The
Nigerian Niger Delta is one of the world’s largest wetlands, and the
largest in Africa. It
encompasses over 20,000 square kilometers. It is a vast
floodplain built up by the accumulation of centuries of silt washed down
the
Niger and Benue Rivers, composed of four main ecological zones—coastal
barrier
islands, mangroves, fresh water swamp forests, and lowland
rainforests—whose
boundaries vary according to the patterns of seasonal flooding.
The mangrove forest of Nigeria is the
third
largest in the world and the largest in Africa; over 60 percent of this
mangrove, or 6,000 square kilometers, is found in the Niger Delta. The
freshwater swamp forests of the delta reach 11,700 square kilometers and
are
the most extensive in west and central Africa. The Niger Delta region
has the
high biodiversity characteristic of extensive swamp and forest areas,
with many
unique species of plants and animals. In the oil rich
Niger Delta region of Nigeria (which is composed of 9 states), gas
flaring as a
component of climate change is a huge issue.
Water and Sanitation Issues
In the vast Niger Delta — 187 local
government areas, about 30 million peoples, 12% of Nigeria’s surface
area, 13,329 communities, with only 98 being
urban centers, long coastlines and environments that are devastated, the
development
challenge in the region still remains scary. This is currently being
exacerbated by the devastating
extreme events associated with climate change such as flooding and
erosion.
Gas Production in the Niger Delta
Ranked seventh in
the world’s
gas production capacity, Nigeria is said to have the highest gas reserve
in Africa. However, it loses an estimated $2.5 billion annually to gas
flaring,
emitting about 2.5
billion standard cubic meters of carbon dioxide to the
living environment. Gas flaring
in Nigeria currently accounted for 20
per cent of the world total. Nigeria flares more gas than any other
country in the
world: approximately 75 percent of total gas production in Nigeria is
flared,
and about 95 percent of the “associated gas” which is produced as a
by-product
of crude oil extraction from reservoirs in which oil and gas are mixed.