Nigeria: Shell’s water borehole poisons community

Umuorie Isimiri Community is located in Ukwa West Local Government Area of Abia State. Umuorie Isimiri is an hour and 20 minutes drive from Umuahia, capital of Abia State. It is a community of about 5,000 people, made up of mostly farmers. Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) Isimiri Flow Station in Umuorie Isimiri Community is by the Imo River at the boundary between Abia and Rivers State. ERA monitors visited the community on 3 August 2010 to ascertain SPDC level of compliance with a court judgement delivered by Court of Appeal Owerri, Imo State ordering it to pay special damages of N1.49 billion to the community for oil spill and environmental degradation.