Oil Spillage and Fishing Decline in Ibeno, 1998–2010

Abstract

This study examines how persistent oil spillage led to fishing decline in Ibeno Local Government Area, Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria, between 1998 and 2010. The problem it addressed was the destruction of artisanal fishing livelihoods in one of Nigeria's most productive coastal fishing communities. The study adopted an analytical historical methodology and made use of the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework as developed by Chambers and Conway and later systematised by the United Kingdom's Department for International Development. Evidence was drawn from peer-reviewed journal articles, institutional reports, newspaper accounts, and the documented testimonies of affected individuals, including fishermen. The study found that oil spillage eroded all five livelihood capitals identified by the SLF. Natural capital was depleted through the destruction of fish populations and estuarine habitats. Physical capital was damaged through the contamination and accelerated deterioration of fishing equipment. Human capital declined through health deterioration and the forced migration of skilled fishing labour. Financial capital was progressively exhausted as income collapsed, and no compensation was paid. Social capital was undermined by displacement, community disaggregation, and the total failure of regulatory institutions to enforce accountability. The study concludes that the fishing decline documented in Ibeno was not just a series of discrete environmental accidents but the structural dispossession of a community whose livelihood assets were comprehensively dismantled by environmental contamination in the absence of institutional protection. The study suggests that multinational oil oil companies, state and federal governments should be accountable by taking responsibility in preventing the spill from further happening or take immediate steps to clean up whenever it happens.