Trial has begun in a London High Court, United Kingdom, of the Dutch oil giant Shell, over years of alleged oil pollution in two onshore and offshore oil producing communities in Rivers State, according to thesouthernexaminer.com.
Consequently, oil spillage has devastated their environment, including farmlands and rivers, killed their fishes in the waters and destroyed their crops and other farm products in the two villages.
With a total population of over 50,000, the Ogale community in Eleme Local Government Area, and Bille in Degema Local Government Area, the communities are demanding from Shell International the sum of 10 billion US dollars and two billion pounds as compensation for the damage and effect of the pollution on them.
The trial, which started last week, will last till March 7, 2025. It was followed by mass protests, both in Nigeria and the United Kingdom, all calling for an end to environmental degradation and justice for the two communities and their people.
Mrs. Justice May is presiding over the “preliminary issues trial” at the High Court in London and is expected to determine the scope of the legal issues to be decided next year when the full trial is to take place.
The two impacted communities in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria have in the past 10 years been without clean drinking water and unable to farm, and fish, neither have they had a proper clean up, despite several calls for remediation.
The trial bothers on claims by the Ogale and Bille communities that oil spillage from Shell pipelines has caused devastating damage to their local environment, breaching their rights to a clean and healthy environment under the Nigerian constitution and African Charter.
Mrs. Justice May is to determine two key issues: whether oil pollution by a private company can amount to a violation of a community’s fundamental human rights under the Nigerian constitution and African Charter on human and Peoples rights.
She is also to decide whether Shell can also be held liable for damage to Shell pipelines due to oil theft, otherwise known as “bunkering” or for the waste produced as a result of illegal refining of spilled or stolen oil.
Shell claims that most of the pollution in the Niger Delta was caused by these two activities while the communities blamed Shell for repeatedly failing to take basic steps to stop the activity.
The delegation from Ogale for the London Court matter is being led by their traditional ruler, King Godwin Bebe Okpabi, while those of the Bille community are led by Chief Bennett Okpoki.
They are being represented by their counsel, Leigh Day International team partners. Daniel Leader and Matthew Renshaw, who have instructed Fountain Courts Anneliese Day KC Matrix’s Phillippa Kaufmann KC Anirudh Mathur and Catherine Amold 2 Temple Gardens Alistair Mckenzie and Blackstone’s George Molyneaux.
King Okpabi, leader of the Ogale community, expressed delight that finally Shell has been brought to face the trial after 10 years of pollution, and “we hope to prove that Shell has breached our human rights to a clean and healthy environment under the Nigerian law and the African Charter.”
On his part, Chief Okpoki, leader of the Bille community, said, although the journey to get to this trial level had been tortuous, “We are happy to meet Shell at the High Court in London, and we hope to see justice prevail.
“For years, Shell has tried to delay this case and to evade responsibility for the damage we believe it has caused in our community.
We hope this trial will be a big step forward in our long fight for justice for oil pollution.”
The law firm expressed regret that Shell had allowed the matter to degenerate to the present ongoing trial at the High Court in London by repeatedly attempting to block and delay the legal process.
According to Leigh Day International department partner, Matthew Renshaw, “for over 10 years, after the two Nigerian communities contacted them on the matter, the Dutch firm had failed all entreaties for them to clean up their oil pollution and pay compensation as a way to amicably resolving the issues.”
They believed that if the case was won by their clients under the Nigerian constitution law, it would pave the way for Shell to be held liable, “for violations of our clients fundamental human rights, including their rights to life and rights to a clean environment. Furthermore, the law firm explained that the trial could also open the door to Shell being held responsible for its negligence in failing to take reasonable steps to prevent pollution from oil theft or local refining.
