It was reported that a Dutch Appeals Court has ordered Shell Nigeria to pay compensation to Nigerian farmers in the Niger Delta for oil spills. The court also ordered Shell Nigeria’s parent company to install equipment to prevent future damage caused by leaks in the Niger Delta. The court ruled that Shell is responsible for damage caused by leaks in the Niger Delta, but the oil giant (Royal Dutch Shell) denied the allegations, stating that the leaks were caused by sabotage. The court ruled that Royal Dutch Shell did not prove beyond reasonable doubt that saboteurs caused the leaks affecting the villages of Goi and Oruma, rather than poor maintenance. Last week Friday, the Royal Dutch Shell stated that it was disappointed with the verdict. In 2008, four farmers (Barizaa Dooh, Elder Friday Alfred Akpan, Chief Fidelis A Oguru and Alali Efanga) in the Niger Delta (Nigeria) filed the case against Shell Nigeria, stated that the leaks from underground oil pipelines had cost them their livelihoods by contaminating land and waterways. Mr Efanga and Mr Dooh have died but their sons pursued the case. Oil leaking pipeline has been the major problem of the Niger Delta in Nigeria and this affects farmers whose sources of livelihood have been continuously taken away by the environmental destruction in that part of Nigeria.
Sources: Viewers Corner News.