FG to establish task force on pollution, warns international oil companies 

The Federal Government on Monday announced the plan to institute an environmental task force on oil pollution.

The government said it would, from now, hold International Oil Companies (IOCs) accountable for contaminating the environment.

Minister of Environment, Mohammed Abdullahi spoke at the 12th Regulatory Dialogue organised by the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA).

Abdullahi explained that the essence was to address the gaps and produce a sufficient regulatory framework that would deal with challenges.

The minister said the government was aware of the state of environmental degradation in Nigeria and was making efforts to address the situation.

“The federal government will henceforth hold the international oil companies accountable for the massive pollution of our environment and its ecosystem.”

The environmental task force will monitor, track, evaluate and sanction erring companies and their local collaborators.

Abdullahi said that the government will apply “the principles of the polluters pays” to help in remediation efforts of polluted communities.

He confirmed that NESREA had developed 35 national environmental regulations across different sectors of the economy.