Holding Operators in the Nigerian Petroleum Industry to a Higher Environmental Standard

Abstract

The oil industry drives the Nigerian economy as oil can be credited for most of Nigeria's foreign earnings. The exploration and production activities by operators in the Nigerian oil industry have for numerous decades resulted massive pollution of land, water and air within the jurisdiction of Nigeria and consequently there have been bitter complaints about the degradation of the environment. Though there are scores of legislations, regulations and policies governing the oil industry, it is clear that the multinational oil companies operating in Nigeria do not conduct their operations on the high levels they do in developed countries. However, the problem does not basically lie with the issue of ‘sub-standard’ legislations, but with the fact that the legislations in place are not routinely and uniformly enforced by the regulatory authorities and are often not complied with by the oil companies. This paper examines the twin problems of enforcement and compliance and tries to find a path out of the regulatory quagmire in Nigeria.