Deficient Legislation Sanctioning Oil Spill in Nigeria: A Need for a Review of the Regulatory Component of Petroleum Laws in Nigeria and the Petroleum Industries Bill

Abstract

The grave challenges of oil pollution have been over stated in several environmental journals. Similarly, there have been several discourses on the prevailing nature of Nigerian oil spill pollution. Alarmingly, the spills seem to have persisted, despite existing legislations sanctioning them, making it seem as if there was no legislation sanctioning such pollution activities ab-initio. Scholars state that the environmental pollution and degradation that has emanated from oil spill in Nigeria has led to the destruction of landscape, loss of arable farm­lands, aesthetic environment, fishing operations, revenue, and sometime lives. This article shall therefore review the current legislation to identify their defi­ciencies, as well as the perceived inability of the Petroleum Industries Bill (PIB) to effectively enforce against deliberate pollution.