14266 Volume 1 Defining an Environmental- NDevelopmnent Strategy forlthe NigerDel-ta May 25th, 1995 Volume I Industry and Energy Operations Division West Central Africa Department DEFINING AN ENVIRONMENTAL DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY FOR THE NIGER DELTA VOLUME I CONTENTS Pa2e No. EXECUIVJ1I~E SUMMAI1I1RY .................................................. A ECOLoGicAL SETTING........................................... 1 B SOCIAL FEATURES ..............................................2 C. SECTORAL CHARACTERISTICS......................................4 D. ANALYTicAL FRAMEWORK: ENviRoNMENTAL LINKAGEs .................6 2. ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS AND CHIALLENGES TO SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT..................................... 8 A. LAND RESOURCE DEGRADATION................................... 8 B. RENEWABLE REsoUiRCE DEGRADATioN .............................18 C. ENviRoNMENTAL PoLLuTioN.....................................48 ,3. SOCIAL ISSUES AND CHALLENGES TO SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT ..................................................69 A. DEmoGRAPHIC CHANGE.........................................69 Thinwreport has-been prepared by Jasi Singh -(Taik Mange), avid Moffat: (Consultant) and Olof Liniden (Consultant). It is.based on considerable input from Nigeia takeholders, infcluding Federal and State government. aencies~,NGOs, communities, academnic, experts and. fthe private sector. The' World Bank team worke closel'y w'ith the. Fedral Environmiental Protection Agnc and the Rivers: and: Delta: State EnvironmentalProttiovon :Agencis. :Local ~consul4tants preparebd bakgrond papers,on biodiversity (Bnce Powell~ polutin ( irim and Tune Ii un)finstitutional anid legal frameworks (0DOuas,fseis(.. T.Ooo n lo roin(.K .Aa) International consltats prepared backgr :ound. papers. on pollutin assesment (Plle Grvy) andmk eniometlecononucs (Michael Lidda). inaca :support was proide bytheGloal nvionmnt aciity(GEF) and lhe Swedish: anid D)aish,TrsFud.Tepr reie ks,Rbert :.Cle etJns(AFMS) and: Mra **tilos. (ENVL) rvddipra t inut Valuable cotributions nd commentswere provided byMsr.Je Sko (AF4R) Robert Noote (Conultnt) an Jac Ruteneek(Conultnt) aswell asovr 0iera stakeholders.: Ms. Lee Swapp n Ms Sll Resek rovidedsecretra ~support. s Mx OakesSit. n Mr. OlivierLfucd r h maaigDivso -chie and DeatetlDirector, respciey - ii - Pa2e No. B. HUMAN HEALTH .................. 70 C. HOUSING ........................................................................................ 74 E. INFRASTRUCTURE ......................... 75 F. TRANSPORTATION ......................... 80 G. HOUSEHOLD ENERGY ......................... 80 H. CURRENT AND POTENTIAL RESOURCE CONFLICTS . .80 4. THE INDIRECT CAUSES OF ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES .86 A. ANALYTICAL PERSPECTIVE .86 B. INDIRECT CAUSES .89 5. ASSESSING ENVIRONMENTAL PRIORITIES . .99 A. PRIMARY CRITERIA FOR RANKING PRIORITIES ......................................... 99 B. PRELIMINARY RANKING ......................................... 100 C. LAND RESOURCE DEGRADATION ......................................... 101 D. RENEWABLE RESOURCE DEGRADATION .................... ..................... 104 E. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION ......................................... 108 F. SUMMARY OF PRIORITIES ......................................... 116 6. STRATEGIC OPTIONS - INTEGRATED ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT AND DEVELOPMENT .117 A. THE CONSEQUENCES OF No ACTION ........................................................... 117 B. CONCEPTUAL POLICY FRAMEWORK: INTEGRATED COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT .. . . .................................................... 118 C. POLICY REFORM S ..................................................... 122 D. ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND EXCHANGE ........................ 126 E. DEVELOPMENT AND INITIATION OF AN ACTION PLAN ... 129 F. INSTITUTIONAL ISSUES . ... .................................................. 130 G. STRATEGIC OPTIONS ........... ...................................... ... 131 Boxes Box 2.1 Reductions in Sediment Loads as a Consequence of Dam Construction in Major Rivers 10 Box 2 2 Mitigation of Sedimentation in Sanmenxia Dam and Other Dams Along the Yellow River, China 11 Box 2.3 Value of Sustainable Management of Fisheries . .19 Box 2.4 Aquaculture ...... 20 Box 2.5 Value of Non-Timber Forest Products in the Niger Delta .28 Box 2.6 Niger Delta Environmental Survey 51 Box 2.7 Escravos-Flared Gas Reduction Project ..60 Box 3.1 Recent Epidemics in Delta State ..73 - li - Page No. Box 3.2 Nembe - Sanitation and Infrastructure in the Mangrove Ecological Zone ..... 81 Box 3.3 OMPADEC ............................................. 82 Box 4.1 Macroeconomic Adjustment and Environmental Quality .................. ............ 95 Box 5.1 Examples of the Economic Impacts of Erosion and Flooding in Coastal Areas . 103 Box 5.2 Benefits and Costs of Intensification in Rivers State ..................................... 104 Box 5.3 Precautionary Policies and the Costs of Fishery Over-harvesting .................. 105 Box 5.4 International Willingness to Pay for Tropical Forests ................................... 107 Box. 5.5 Economic Impacts of Water Hyacinth ..............................................,,.,,.108 Box. 5.6 Estimated Costs of Mechanical Harvesting of Water Hyacinth ..................... 109 Box 5.7 Environmental Accounting: Some Lessons from the Philippines ................... 110 Box 5.8 Consumer Willingness to Pay for Potable Water and Sanitation ...........11........ I Box 5.9 Estimating Health Benefits from Improved Sewerage Systems in Port Harcourt .................................................. 112 Box 5.10 International Willingness to Pay for Reduced Global Warming ..................... 113 Box 5.11 Estimating the Benefits of Reduced Particulate Ernissions ............................ 114 Box 6.1 Community Protected and Managed Aquatic Areas in the Niger Delta ......... 122 Box 6.2 Empowering Farmers in Africa - Case Studies ........................................... 123 Box 6.3 Participatory Natural Resource Management in Burkina Faso ...................... 124 Box 6.4 Integrated Conservation and Local Development Case Studies ............ ........ 125 Box 6.5 Examples of Potential Indicators for Assessing the Impact of an ICZM Program ........................................... 127 Figures Figure I Niger Delta Coastal Zone Sector Work Process ............................................ vi Figure II Key Social and Environmental Institutions in the Niger Delta .............. ......... xiii Figure 2.1 Indexed Official Catch Figures ........................................... 21 Figure 2.2 Mangrove Distribution in West Africa .................... ....................... 25 Figure 2.3 Land Use Within Rivers State Forest Reserves ........................................... 37 Figure 3.1 10 Leading Causes of Diseases in Rivers State (Morbidity) ................ .......... 72 Figure 3.2 Sources of Drinking Water ........................................... 77 Figure 3.3 Toilet Facilities in the Niger Delta ............... ............................ 78 Figure 4.1 Relationship Between the Location and Type of Mangrove Goods and Services and their Economic Valuation .................................. 92 Pictures Picture 2.1 Example of Coastal Erosion in Rivers State .10 Picture 2.2 Sand Dredging Downstream of Yenagoa .12 Picture 2.3 Flooding in Sangana, Rivers State - July 1994 .13 Picture 2.4 C'ollection of Mangrove Leaves as Fish Lures .26 Picture 2.5 Log Raft Heading Towards the Coast .30 Picture 2.6 New Section of the Yenagoa Oil Palm Plantation .33 - iv - Pame No. Picture 2.7 Water Hyacinth Complete Covering a Stream ........................................ 45 Picture 2.8 Water Hyacinth ........................................ 46 Picture 2.9 The Bonny Petroleum Terminal ........................................ 49 Picture 2.10 Gas Flaring ........................................ 60 Picture 3. 1 Toilet Building Over a River ................. .................................. 80 Tables Table I Comparison of the World's Major Rivers ................................................... vii Table II Ranking of Environmental Issues ................................................... viii Table III Agenda for Key Policy Objectives and Proposed Actions ...................... ....... xix Table 2.1 Sediment Load Estimate for the Niger Delta ................................................. 9 Table 2.2 Fuelwood Demand and Supply Balance ................................................... 28 Table 2.3 Mangrove Conversion in Rivers State by Shell Petroleum ............................. 36 Table 2.4 Estimates of Total Effluents in Rivers State and Port Harcourt ............. I ....... 58 Table 2.5 Flaring of Natural Gas in Major Producing Countries ................................... 59 Table 2.6 Blood Lead Levels with Traffic Exposed Personnel in Selected Countries ..... 63 Table 2.7 Estimates of Air Emissions in Rivers State and Port Harcourt ............ ........... 64 Table 2.8 Estimated Total Solid Waste and Slodge Generation from Industry and Households in the Port Harcourt Area ................................................... 66 Table 4.1 Major Causes of Environmental Degradation ................................................ 86 Table 5.1 Priority of Major Environmental Problems ................................................... 102 Table 6.1 The Status of National ICZM Programs ................................................... 120 Maps Map 1 Vegetation Zones of the Niger Delta ........................................ ........... 151 Map 2 Drainage Area of the Niger River ......................... .......................... 152 Map 3 Infrastructure and Flooding Risk Zones in Port Harcourt .............................. 153 Map 4 Distribution of Oil and Gas Fields and Infrastructure ..................... ............... 154 Map 5 Population Densities in Africa ................................................... 155 v EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Niger Delta has been blessed with an abundance of physical and human resources, including the majority of Nigeria's oil and gas deposits, good agricultural land, extensive forests, excellent fisheries, as well as with a well-developed industrial base, a strong banking system, a large labor force, and a vibrant private sector. However, the region's tremendous potential for economic growth and sustainable development remains unfulfilled and its future is threatened by deteriorating economic conditions that are not being addressed by present policies and actions. An urgent need exists to implement mechanisms to protect the life and health of the region's inhabitants and its ecological systemsfrom further deterioration. Introduction This report examines the major obstacles to sustainable development in the Niger Delta and presents strategic options for overcoming them. Sustainable development will require a balance between accelerated economic growth and environmental protection to ensure that the people of the Niger Delta benefit as much as possible from the exploitation of their resources. The immediate objective of the report is to provide a basis for discussions on how to address the key environmental concerns in the region. The report assesses the full range of environmental issues to identify the priority concerns based on the severity of their health and environmental impacts. The principal constraints to addressing the concerns, including institutional capacity, information, beneficiary consultation, regulatory frameworks, and enforcement, are examined. The report also critically discusses policies issues and options that should be addressed in designing a regional environmental development strategy. The report was developed based on an innovative and highly participatory process which emphasized beneficiary consultation and collaboration to ensure local ownership (Figure I). The next steps in the process are an expanded stakeholder review of the report and the development of a beneficiary action plan to tackle the key environmental issues facing the Niger Delta. The report is divided into two volumes. Volume I introduces the defining ecological, social and economic characteristics of the region and analyzes the critical environmental and social problems facing the region (Chapters 1, 2 and 3). It also examines the indirect causes which lead to environmental degradation (Chapter 4). An environmental and human health risk assessment framework is utilized to determine priorities among the major environmental issues (Chapter 5). Volume I concludes with a discussion of specific policy and project options to address the priority environmental problems and presents integrated coastal zone management as a model for coordinating development in the region (Chapter 6). Volume II contains statistical tables and annexes with detailed information on issues summarized in Volume I. vi Background The Niger Delta is one of the world's largest wetlands, encompassing over 20,000 km2 in southeastern Nigeria (Map 1). The Niger River has the ninth largest drainage area of the world's rivers (Table I, Map 2). Being an vast interface between land and water systems, the delta is ecologically very complex. The social systems are equally intricate, comprising 26 language groups in addition to several large urban areas. The states that are the focus of this study, Rivers State and Delta State, include approximately 80 percent of the Niger Delta. The total population of the two states is estimated to be 6.7 million, with 70 percent of inhabitants living in rural communities. Rivers and Delta States together produce about 75 percent of Nigeria's petroleum - equal to over 50 percent of national government revenues. Figure I Niger Delta Coastal Zone Sector Work Process Consultations with Mission focused on systematic discussions of the The action plan will provide Nigerian experts report through seminars and group meetings with a the basis for the govemment, and stakeholders wide varity of stakeholders. Report widely distributed NGOs, the private sector, and as well as Bank in Nigeria and in the internaional environmental donors to implement policy and intemational community. Over 20 written comments received from reforms and priority ICZ7M experts stakeholers. investments BANK ll_ 1^ Draft m 1 Revised Data > ~~~~Report.olRpr 7=_ Preparatiodi gathering CZ p w gv bnfcai COUNTRY and t d a t C X >~~~analysis Loca States established CZ Coordinating Commniftees. 'The June 1995 workshop SEPAs dcvelop CZ progr-ams will give beneficiaries Select studies in critical areas detailed action plan to by Nigerian and internationaldealdctopano Coastal zone Issues, mecl. by Nieinadinentoa address the Issues they water pollution, identified as consultants: (i) pollution; (ii) Comments and additional determine to be most priority concerns in tifEAP environmental econornics; information incorporated into critical. process and SEPA State of (iii) biodiversity; (iv) the report to refine the Env iro nnt Reports. institutions; (v) fisheries; (vi) prioritization of key issues flood and erosion; (vii) and develop appropriate participatory rural appraisal. strategic options. The delta is a vast floodplain built up by the accumulation of sedimentary deposits washed down the Niger and Benue Rivers. It is composed of four ecological zones: coastal barrier islands, mangroves, fresh-water swamp forests, and lowland rainforests. The hydrological boundaries between ecological zones are fluid and depend on seasonal river flows. Nigeria has the third largest mangrove forest in the world and the largest in Africa, over 60 percent of which is located in the Niger Delta (6000 km2). The fresh-water swamp forests of the delta are considerably larger (11,700 kM2) and the most extensive in west and central Africa. With the high rates of deforestation in the rest of the country, the fresh-water swamp forests will vii soon become the largest forest zone in Nigeria. Most of the lowland rainforest is now derived savanna with small areas of intact forest remaining. The barrier island forests are the smallest of the ecological zones in the delta, but are largely intact and have high concentrations of biodiversity. The high rainfall and river discharge during the rainy season, combined with the low, flat terrain and poorly drained soils, cause widespread flooding and erosion: over 80 percent of the delta is seasonally flooded. During most years, only select elevated areas remain dry. When the flood waters recede, the channels that spread out across the delta leave swamps and pools that drain only poorly, if at all. A dynamic equilibrium between flooding, erosion, and sediment deposition is the defining characteristic of the delta ecosystem. However, construction of dams along the Niger River during the last twenty-five years has disrupted the hydrological balance by significantly modifying water flow regimes and sediment deposition. Table I: Comparison of the World's Major Rivers RIVER CONTINENT DRAINAGE AREA SEDIMENT YIELD (million kM2) (tlkm2) 1 Amazon S. America 6.15 146 2 Zaire Africa 3.82 11 3 Mississippi N. America 3.27 107 4 Nile Africa 2.96 38 5 La Plata S. America 2.83 196 6 Yenisei Europe 2.58 23 7 Lena Europe 2.50 23 8 Ob Europe 2.50 42 9 Niger Africa 2.23 33 10 Yangtze Asia 1.94 531 Source: Mahmood, 1987; Rangeley et al., 1994. Despite its vast oil reserves, the region remains poor. GNP per capita is below the national average of US$280. Most resource and land use decisions are made by an expanding poor population. Their decisions are being driven by a lack of development, stagnant agricultural productivity, negligible opportunities in urban areas, rapid population growth, and tenuous property rights. The rural population commonly fish or practice subsistence agriculture, supplementing their diet and income with a wide variety of forest products. During floods, which in some areas last for over half the year, drinking water is frequently contaminated. In the dry season, insufficient water is often available to dilute contaminants, which also leads to increased risk of water borne disease. Clearly, water related diseases exert an enormous social and. economic toll in the Niger Delta. These problems are exacerbated by the fact that both urban and rural infrastructure is poor - electrification, potable water supply, and sanitation levels are very low. The extensive flooding makes transportation difficult in rural areas. viii Determining Environmental Priorities An evaluation of the major environmental problems facing the Niger Delta indicates that some of the problems are particularly critical. The problems are ranked based on their environmental, human health, and economnic significance. The rankings are refined by comparing the costs and benefits of potential interventions. Problems which pose significant environmental or health risks and have high net intervention benefits are assigned the highest priority. The prioritization process utilized in the report represents a first cut based on the limited information available. However, it is an effective filter for determining where policy interventions can be most effectively directed given the limited resources and institutional capacity available in the Niger Delta. Additional analytical research, particularly spatially based information, and continuing systematic stakeholder participation is essential to reach consensus on which issues should be addressed. An initial assessment of priorities determined the ranking presented in Table II. Table II: Ranking of Environmental Issues Category High Priorib Moderate Priorib Lower Priority Land Resource Agricultural land Coastal erosion. Sea level rise. Degradation degradation. Riverbank erosion. Flooding (moderate - high). Renewable Resource Fisheries depletion. Fisheries habitat Mangrove Degradation Deforestation. degradation. degradation. Biodiversity loss. Nypa palm Water hyacinth expansion. expansion. Environmental Sewage. Oil pollution. G fl Pollution Vehicular emissions. Industrial effluents. as armg. Municipal solid wastes. Industrial air Toxic and hazardous emissions. substances. Industrial solid wastes. Agricultural Land Degradation. Agricultural land degradation is a high overall priority because of the large geographic extent of the problem. Extensive and formerly highly productive areas of the lowland rainforests and fresh-water swamp forests have been affected by soil fertility declines. At current population growth rates, agricultural output will need to double in the next two decades to meet existing subsistence requirements. Since agricultural inputs are generally not available or too expensive for most farmers in the Niger Delta, they resort to cultivating increasingly marginal land and increasing the frequency of cropping on existing plots. Agricultural land degradation's central role in causing deforestation and exhausting soil fertility, with its consequent negative impact on rural development, warrants the high priority. The potential benefits of increasing agricultural productivity and preventing While the local environmental impact of gas flaring in the Niger Delta is assessed as low, its contribution to the international problem of greenhouse gas emissions is substantial. ix expansion into forests through more intensive rather than extensive farming are estimated to be valued at US$30 million in terms of continued supplies of forest products from Rivers State, nearly eight times the cost of appropriate interventions. Flooding. Flooding induced land degradation is a problem throughout the Niger Delta. The construction of upstream dams and subsequent sedimentation of the reservoirs has created very large annual floods that supply little sediment to the delta. Increased flooding and reduced sediment loads, as well as greater population and farming activities in flood prone areas, has intensified the negative impact of flooding. Direct losses from flooding include large areas of valuable land which cannot be cultivated and the destruction of infrastructure and housing. In addition, flooding substantially degrades the health status of both rural and urban communities by increasing the prevalence of water-related diseases. Offsetting the large benefits of intervening are control costs which are generally very high, resulting in the moderate to high ranking of this problem. Fisheries Depletion. At present overfishing is of high overall priority because fishing is a critical activity in rural delta communities - 400,000 artisanal fishermen supply 80 percent of the total catch and fish contribute at least 50 percent of per capita animal protein intake. The total annual value of a sustainable harvest is estimated to be N5 billion. The delta, being predominantly a floodplain habitat, is a highly productive waterbody for fisheries and a critical nursery for offshore and upstream ecosystems. The very weak information base prevents an unequivocal conclusion that overfishing is taking place, but all available indicators suggest that coastal fish stocks are overfished: annual catches vary drastically, but are generally declining and catch per effort for both the artisanal and industrial sectors is declining. Since fisheries management is virtually non-existent, but can be highly effective in increasing yields at relatively low cost, the net marginal benefits of improved management by preventing open access and enforcing regulations on fishing methods will be high. Supporting local initiatives in improved fisheries management, equipment, storage, and distribution will probably be another of the most cost-effective management interventions. Deforestation. Deforestation and forest degradation are large scale problems in two of the four ecozones: fresh-water swamp and barrier island forests. Deforestation in the mangroves has not been significant - an estimated 5-10 percent have been lost. Deforestation is no longer a major issue in lowland rainforests since the forests are already highly degraded. In contrast, the fresh-water swamp and barrier island forests are under great pressure from agricultural and infrastructure expansion, as well as logging. The importance of the remaining fresh-water and barrier island forests is very high for reducing the severity of flooding and erosion and for preserving biodiversity. Timber resources and especially nontimber forest products (NTFPs) are a critical source of income for many rural households - the value of NTFPs in River State alone may exceed US$100 million annually. Consequently, the potential benefits of preserving these future values are high. Intervention actions to strengthen the State Forestry Departments, especially their monitoring and enforcement capabilities, are relatively inexpensive and anticipated to cost well under US$2 million annually. x Biodiversity Loss. The biodiversity significance of the Niger Delta is high from regional and global perspectives. According to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the Niger Delta is one of the highest conservation priorities on the west coast of Africa. It holds a large number of threatened and endangered species, particularly mammals, that are economically, aesthetically, and scientifically very valuable. For example, the only mammal known to be endemic to Nigeria, Sclater's guenon, is found in the delta. The high value of the biodiversity in the region is being rapidly eroded by hunting, uncontrolled logging, agricultural encroachment and poorly designed development projects. The State Forestry Departments are completely unable to address these threats in protected areas, let alone other biologically rich areas. The benefit of preserving biodiversity in the region is rated as high because of its rich biological resources and the rising international willingness to pay for biodiversity. For example, the international willingness-to-pay for three of the most important conservation areas is estimated to be six times the cost of effective protection. However, even these low costs are far above the existing budgets of the forestry departments. Water Hyacinth Proliferation. Water hyacinth, an exotic species, has spread from Lagos to Akwa Ibom State in only 7 years. The plant has expanded into most of the fresh water systems of the delta. It has effectively closed many creeks in the delta to water related activities - a critical loss to communities which rely on water transportation and fishing. The high rate of expansion and severe impacts on transportation and fishing mean that the potential benefits of intervention are high. The costs of intervention, however, can still be substantial. Mechanical and manual harvesting techniques have been used to clear water hyacinth, although both are relatively costly and neither is completely effective. Manual harvesting is often socially beneficial because it provides additional income to those who bear the negative impact of water hyacinth (such as fishermen). Toxic and Hazardous Substances. Toxic and hazardous substances are a priority because of their high potential to impair human health in urban areas. The health risks are greatly magnified by the lack of waste treatment, poor drainage systems, and reliance on surface and shallow groundwater for drinking water. In addition to hazardous emissions from industries, biological wastes from hospitals and medical clinics contribute to an escalating problem of toxic wastes in the Niger Delta. Controlling these wastes will generate moderate long-term benefits to the region in terms of reduced health costs. Although the costs of intervention vary considerably, sound management practices which separate wastes and establish tracking mechanisms are very cost-effective as a starting point. Of moderate cost, but of critical importance, is the construction of a secure hazardous waste disposal facility in the Port Harcourt area. Sewage. Health risks associated with sewage contaminated water are highly significant and affect a large proportion of the urban population in the region. The health impact is aggravated because no municipal sewage treatment plants operate in the Niger Delta. Organic pollutant levels in Port Harcourt are extremely high compared with cities with sewage treatment facilities. Households and small scale industries produce most of the organic pollutants; medium and large scale industries are much less significant. The high pollutant levels substantially increase the risk of water-related diseases. Current productivity losses xi associated with water-borne diseases are estimated to approach US$20 million annually and the potential benefits of improving sewage facilities could approach US$250 million annually. Nigerian and Ghanaian studies have found that consumers are willing to pay for improved water supply from private vendors and are willing to invest in simple sanitation infrastructure. The studies provide support for examining the potential for private sector service provision. Vehicular Emissions. Estimates of air emissions in Rivers State and Port Harcourt indicate that lead emissions from vehicles are of great concern in urban areas. Of secondary importance are vehicular particulate emissions. The concentration of lead in Nigerian gasoline is one of the highest levels in the world (0.74 mg/i). Lead contributes to mental dysfunction (and potentially death). Children are at greatest risk because they spend a larger proportion of their day close to street level and lead has an especially severe impact on the neurological development of children. Control costs for lead and particulates are relatively low; changes in fuel specifications are often relatively inexpensive, yet are sufficient to achieve acceptable levels of lead (in petrol) and particulates (in diesel). Lack of information on emission levels, fuel consumption, exposure levels, and health impacts is a serious constraint to managing this problem. Municipal Solid Wastes. Inadequate municipal solid waste management poses a serious health threat to people living in urban areas and some rural communities. Solid wastes clog drainage systems, increasing flooding and water-related diseases. When dumped into nearby water bodies, they reduce water quality, further adding to health risks. Municipal solid waste generation in Port Harcourt (approximately 96,000 tons per year) is an order of magnitude higher than industrial solid waste generation. Neither of the two largest cities, Port Harcourt and Warri, have sanitary landfills; they rely on open dump sites and river dumping. Given the high social costs of improper disposal of municipal solid wastes, the future benefits of intervening are commensurably high. The costs of appropriate management programs, involving sanitary landfills, waste collection, and separation of selected wastes for recycling, are generally moderate in comparison to the benefits. Oil Pollution. The impact of all oil related activities on the environment of the Niger Delta is widespread and substantial (Map 4). Infrastructure development for oil activities causes serious physical alteration of the environment and degradation of natural resources. The indirect impacts of oil development, particularly the effect of a very large influx of people into the region, are also very significant. However, oil pollution, by itself, is only of moderate priority when compared with the full spectrum of environmental problems in the Niger Delta. Research in the delta and from spills and experiments in other tropical areas throughout the world has consistently found that only areas that are directly exposed to large or repeated oil spills or leaks frequently exhibit long-term environmental problems. The impact of oil pollution on human health is not expected to be substantial. Given the low environmental and health impacts, the actual future benefits of reducing oil pollution are low. Nevertheless, the intervention costs of avoiding most incidents of oil pollution are not high and should be included in the normal operating costs of oil companies working in the delta, as is the case in most of the world. The intangible benefits of better relations with riverine communities could be quite high if future pollution were better controlled. xii Social Priorities. Of the major social concems in the Niger Delta, water supply, sanitation, and associated health problems are the greatest priority. Health indicators for the Niger Delta are significantly worse than southern Nigerian averages. Water-related diseases, many of which result from poor sanitation and inadequate water supply, are the most severe health problem facing the region, causing 80 percent of reported illnesses. Malaria is by far the most prevalent disease, followed by diarrhoreal diseases. The State Health Ministries estimate that just 20 to 24 percent of rural communities and 45 to 50 percent of urban communities have access to safe drinking water sources. These figures may be optimistic since none of the public water supply is treated in either state. Studies have found high levels of fecal indicator bacteria from surface water samples and in tap water throughout the region. Only 25 percent and 12 percent of Delta and Rivers State households, respectively, are estimated to use satisfactory sanitation facilities. No municipal wastewater treatment facilities exist in either state. Urban residential wastes are directly discharged to the nearest open drain, water body, or soaked into the ground. When the drainage systems are filled with waste during heavy rainfalls, health risks from water-related diseases are high. During the dry season, clean water is also difficult to find since contaminants are not readily diluted, increasing the prevalence of water-related diseases. Constraints to an Environmental Development Strategy Institutional Constraints. The institutional framework for addressing environmental issues is expanding in the Niger Delta in response to government and stakeholder concerns about environmental degradation (Figure II). The Rivers State Environmental Protection Agency has operated for five years and Delta State has nearly completed establishing its own Environmental Protection Agency. A large number of other federal and state agencies also have environmental responsibilities. Although institutions exist with responsibility for mitigating all major environmental problems, severe constraints limit their actual impact. A large problem is that clear divisions of responsibilities often do not exist, leading to inaction or duplication of efforts. For example, six federal and state agencies in each state have flood and erosion control as part of their mandates. However, none of the agencies actually addresses flood and erosion problems and no management plans have been developed. In addition to low levels of institutional cooperation, a client focus and accountability to stakeholders are missing. As a result, cornmunity participation in policy and program development is lacking and community based, rather than centralized, programs are rare. The government also has a tendency to create new agencies to address topical problems rather than strengthen existing institutions, whose weakness and neglect led to issues becoming severe problems. xiii Figure II Key Social and Environmental Institutions in the Niger Delta Community Based Organizations Church Groups CeeWomen's Group ICommunity Orgs Examples of Environmental NGOs Rivers Chiefs and People's Niger Delta Wetlands ProNatur Wetlands Environmental Nigeran Conservation Conference Centre P Na Protection Association Foundation Local and Municipal Govemnment Local Govt. Agencies Sanitati Watr Boards State Government State Environmental Departrent of Forestry Department ofFisheries Ministry of Works, Ministry of Health Protection Agency 11Housing, and Transport Federal Government Institutional objectives and programs are often inappropriate and even contradictory to achieving environmentally sustainable development. This is particularly a problem for line ministries with specific objectives, such as increasing the number of roads or improving agricultural output, which do not take into account the environmental and social impacts of their activities. Institutional objectives need to be revised to address sectoral needs which are compatible with achieving the common goal of sustainable development. Institutions with broad, cross sectoral mandates often have difficulty setting priorities among their responsibilities. For example, the Rivers State SEPA is required to deal with issues ranging from erosion to hazardous wastes, but has yet to define clearly where it can apply its limited resources most effectively. Even when institutional objectives are sound and clear priorities are established, financial, personnel, and technical constraints severely limit implementation of programs and enforcement of regulations. Budget allocations to address the key environmental and social concerns are not commensurate with the severity of the problems. For example, the Delta State Ministry of Works receives 40 percent of the state budget for infrastructure development, while the total state health allocation is 8 percent and the forestry allocation is less than one-half of I percent. The Rivers State Forestry Department budget was cut from NI million to N500,000 in 1995 to manage some of the continent's most valuable forests. The solution to the financial constraints may not always require increased state allocations. In some cases institutions should be granted greater flexibility in generating their own sources of revenue or private sector service provision should be encouraged. For example, timber tariffs should be increased and State Fisheries Departments should consider selling fishing licenses to generate funds. xiv State institutions are generally inadequately staffed to address the critical environmental issues. The Rivers State Forestry Department, for example, has only 13 professional foresters, who require immediate training in natural resource economics, forest management, and conservation to manage and protect state forests effectively. Staff, budget and equipment constraints mean that all institutions are virtually administrative bodies without significant presence in the riverine areas. Most agencies either completely lack field offices or have a few offices that are inadequately staffed and equipped. The impact of the State Ministries of Health, Departments of Forestry, and Environmental Protection Agencies in the riverine areas is very limited because none of the agencies owns water craft. Lacking sufficient resources and clear priorities, agencies rarely enforce existing regulations. For example, there is no enforcement of environmental sanitation, pollution, forest reserve, or environmental impact assessment regulations. Monitoring is equally undeveloped. The State Forestry Departments have only rough estimates of the quantity of timber extracted from forest reserves and other areas. The State Fisheries Departments have no monitoring capacity and do not collect any fisheries statistics. Overall, institutional constraints have meant that government agencies in general have had little positive impact in the riverine areas. Information Constraints. For effective enforcement, as well as policy and decision making, environmentally related information collection, analysis, and dissemination needs to be greatly improved. Incomplete information encourages policy makers to emphasize areas with abundant information and ignore more uncertain and complex environmental and social issues. At present, too little is known about Niger Delta ecosystems, resources, and communities to understand the full impact of resource extraction or the full value of resources. For example, Forestry Departments do not conduct forest inventories before allocating timber concessions, and so have only a vague concept of the value of the resources they are allocating. Critical areas for improved information management are: (i) land and forest surveys; (ii) flood and erosion risk assessments; (iii) fishing effort and yield monitoring; (iv) biological inventories; (v) socioeconomic studies of communities; and (vi) pollution risk assessments. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are especially important for improving the understanding of this highly complex system. For example, the Niger Delta Environmental Survey, which the World Bank is on the steering committee of , should significantly enhance stakeholder understanding of the impact of major economic activities on the delta environment (Box 2.6). Legislative and Regulatory Constraints. The most important regulatory constraint is the lack of enforcement of existing regulations. For almost all the priority environmental problems, regulations are in place which, if enforced, would significantly reduce environmental degradation. Nonetheless, some modification of the current regulatory framework is necessary to improve the efficiency of environmental protection. For instance, overlapping oil pollution legislation and regulatory frameworks have confused oil companies and negatively impacted oil pollution management. Another major regulatory constraint is the absence of market based incentives. Although Rivers State is promulgating pollution charges, they will have little impact on reducing pollution because charges are not based on marginal effluent. The low energy, water, and waste disposal charges also provide minimal incentive to use resources more efficiently. Positive economic incentives, such as tax credits, grants, or xv lines of credit, to encourage firms and individuals to consider the externalities of their actions have not been developed. Policy Constraints. Policy failures frequently occur either because governments fail to address incomplete markets or intervene in markets to the extent that prices are distorted away, from encouraging optimal use of resources. One of the most important policy failures in the Niger Delta is the lack of well defined property rights and their enforcement. Under the Land Use Act of 1978, all land belongs to the Federal Government and is administered by the governor of each State. This policy curtails the traditional rights of local communities, restricts private property rights, and leads to inefficient resource use. The Act and lack of enforcement of communal property rights also encourages government agencies and private companies to ignore communal rights. Tenure insecurity reduces the incentives of producers to invest in the resource and to maximize sustainable benefits. For example, farmers are unlikely to invest in land improvement or switch to longer maturing tree crops if their ownership is uncertain. Insufficient tenure security has reduced participation and accountability to local communities. Oil companies, parastatals, and government agencies have all failed at various times to communicate adequately with local communities and to respond to their concerns. Since property rights are not always recognized or enforced, institutions are frequently not held accountable to the groups most affected by their actions. Furthermore, without strong property rights and accountability, little incentive exists to ensure adequate stakeholder participation in planning and implementation of activities. Inadequate policy responses to incomplete markets have social costs in terms of excessive resource use. For example, the severe solid waste problems in urban centers in the delta result partially from individuals and firms deciding that it is in their interests not to pay the full cost of disposal because only a small portion of the environmental and social costs resulting from their actions directly affects them. Policy interventions are required to induce individuals and firms to account for the social costs of their actions through enforcement of regulations and incentives for provision of waste management services. Prices can be distorted if governments subsidize resource consumption. Low crude oil price netbacks to producers, and low refinery-gate prices to refiners, implicitly provide an incentive for excess consumption of petroleum products. This practice has resulted in what may be one of the most inefficient refinery complexes in the world. Oil exploitation and other economic activities consume excessive amounts of forested land because the compensation rates for damaging forests do not reflect the loss of the wide variety of goods and services provided by those ecosystems - the forest products alone are valued at 50 times the rates paid by the oil companies. Water prices, which are far below the costs of water and wastewater treatment and are frequently not enforced, subsidize consumption and lead to water pollution, over- abstraction of groundwater, and underinvestment in water treatment and distribution. In January 1995, the Federal Government allowed market determined foreign exchange transactions in autonomous funds. In general, the policy will help to decrease economic xvi distortions which disrupt the efficient use of resources by reducing government control of foreign exchange. However, studies in neighboring countries have shown that when exchange rates are allowed to float freely, the increase in producer prices exacerbates environmental degradation unless complementary policies are explicitly targeted to prevent it. This issue may be a concern for Nigeria, and the Niger Delta in particular, because forest and fisheries management remains very weak. Inappropriate fiscal policies include the Federal Government setting interest rates at 5 percent above average funding costs, a level far below market rates. Overall, this distortion exacerbates unsustainable practices by not allowing capital to be put towards the most efficient use. Development of an Integrated Environmental Action Plan Government institutions as well as other stakeholders in the Niger Delta recognize that environmental degradation is taking an increasing toll on human health and economic productivity. This recognition needs to be translated into action by developing and implementing an Action Plan that addresses the priority environmental issues on the ground. Table III presents the key policy objectives and proposed actions which could form the basis of an Action Plan. Critical decisions need to be taken now to develop an integrated strategy that makes the most effective use of the limited resources in the Niger Delta for improving environmental conditions. An integrated resource management approach, such as Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM), is necessary to address the broad range of environrmental and social issues facing the Niger Delta. Generally accepted ICZM principles which have formed the conceptual basis for successful programs throughout the world include: * Addressing the priority issues with interventions that have the highest net marginal benefits; a Developing an appropriate, incentive based, regulatory framework; a Strengthening sectoral management and induce sectoral institutions to recognize and account for the interconnections between coastal resources and uses; a Creating institutional arrangements and linkages to coordinate sectoral activities and policies such that they reinforce the goals agreed on for the coastal zone; * Focusing on proactive environmental planning, impact assessment, and management; * Minimizing foreclosure of future development options by current activities (maintain flexibility for future resource uses); xvii * Following the 'polluter pays' principle, whereby firms are required to pay all-or at least a substantial part-of the social costs of their activities; * Integrating stakeholder participation and ownership throughout the ICZM process; * Establishing open and effective institutions; and * Striving to have prices reflect the full cost of goods and services. Policy Reforms. To achieve sustainable development in the Niger Delta, the Action Plan needs to be based on an appropriate policy framework to deal with the most critical policy failures, including: (i) lack of recognition and enforcement of property rights; (ii) economic policies which fail to encourage markets to reflect the full social and environmental costs of goods and services; and (iii) lack of accountability and participation. The overarching purpose of the policy changes discussed in the report is to provide clear incentives for all stakeholders to work towards environmentally sustainable development in the Niger Delta. On a government level, reform requires that agencies consider their impact on environmental and equity concerns as part of an expanded mandate. At the individual and company level, regulatory reforms need to ensure that extemalities become incorporated into private decision making. For communities, reforms need to give them greater incentives and skills to manage resources more sustainably. Policies need to be directed towards the following objectives and action taken to implement them: (a) reducing negative environmental and social impacts by emphasizing incentive mechanisms; (b) alleviating poverty in order to reduce poverty induced environmental degradation; (c) encouraging investment in renewable resources; (d) increasing resource ownership and management by those affected by degradation; (e) encouraging a precautionary approach to activities where information is poor or impacts are uncertain; and (f) increasing the accountability of decision-makers and expanding stakeholder participation in decision-making processes. xviii Institutional Issues. The implementation of an Action Plan for integrated coastal zone management requires that effective institutions are in place. Many institutions with high levels of skills and resources (both public and private) will be necessary to carry out the wide variety of ICZM responsibilities. In meeting the objectives of the Action Plan, institutional reform is as integral as capacity building to create professional, results orientated, and responsive agencies. The first step in defining institutional responsibilities should be to determine the comparative advantage and hence the role of the public institutions at all levels operating in the Niger Delta in achieving the objectives of the ICZM Action Plan. The existing government agencies will need to be assessed for their ability to meet potential future roles as implementing, monitoring, and enforcement agencies under the ICZM action plan. Stakeholders will need to identify a lead agency, or agencies, to coordinate and oversee management and implementation of the Action Plan. The roles of the State Coastal Zone Coordinating Committees must also be defined. Based on current responsibilities, resources, and effectiveness, all of the participating institutions must be given clear mandates and assignments of responsibility for implementing the most critical elements of the Action Plan. The most important and difficult institutional issue will be to determine which organizations, public, private, or non-governmental, are best suited to implementing the Action Plan at the community level. xix 2 Table m: Agenda for Key Policy Objectives and Proposed Actions Policy Objective Major Constraints Proposed Short Term Actions Proposed Medium Term Actions Correct policies and Limited understanding of the linkages Introduce market based incentives by moving Enforce resource rights. Strengthen conununal eliminate distortions between environmental degradation and towards having prices reflect the full cost of goods resource ownership. Encourage a which exacerbate inefficient policies. Lack of incentives to and services through reducing inappropriate precautionary approach to activities where pollution and result in include social and environmental costs in subsidies, intervening in incomplete markets, information is poor and impacts uncertain by excessive resource private decision making. Inplicit and providing positive incentives to reduce requiring EIAs and additional information depletion. explicit energy, water, land and waste environmental degradation, and increasing user gathering. management subsidies. Inappropriate charges. Achieve and maintain a viable and stable macroeconomic policies. macroeconomic framework. Monitoring and Limited resources and information Provide technical assistance to SEPAs and Adhere to compliance timetables. Establish enforcement of management capacity in agencies to ministries to improve priority setting, information long term monitoring of key quantitative regulations. implement monitoring powers. Lack of management, monitoring, and enforcement. environmental and development indicators. incentives for aggressive enforcement. Establish and enforce realistic compliance Lack of prioritization of issues. Reliance timetables. Allow agencies to retain enforcement on limited federal or state budget revenue. Move from court settlements to allocations. Slow legal enforcement administrative fines. processes. Improve the legal and Absence of market based incentives. Introduce market based incentives, including user Enforce land use zoning regulations. regulatory Inadequate recognition of coimnunal charges, and discharge fees. Develop land use environment. resource rights. Uncoordinated government zoning plans and regulations. Expand legal environmental management. Absence of recognition of communal resource rights. Clearly land use zoning, infrastructure, and define roles of agencies with environmental construction regulations. Insufficient EIA responsibilities. Refine and implement EIA regulations regulations. Increase public Limited information publicly available. NGO and state agency training in environmental Incorporate environmental and health understanding of Lack of emphasis on information education, resource management and conservation, education into school curriculums. Foster and envirommental issues dissemination. and environmental health. Social marketing of strengthen community extension programs in and community level environmental messages through mass media. key areas (land, fisheries and forest mitigation measures. management, flood control, waste management, water supply, public health, and family planning). Demonstration projects in communities. 2 Timetable to be determiined at the Niger Delta Coastal Zone Workshop in Port Harcourt. xx Policy Objective Major Constraints Proposed Short Term Actions Proposed Medium Term Actions Reduce the economic Lack of risk based information. Lack of Assess impact of natural hazards and human linplement mitigation measures at upstream and social costs of implementation of flood reduction activities, including upstream dams. Develop land dams as appropriate. hnplement land use flooding. mandates. Absence of long term and land use zoning plan and regulations based on a zoning regulations. Develop state and use planning. Overlapping jurisdictions. determination of flood and erosion risk zones. community level protection and drainage Limited resources. Establish incentives to reduce development in high projects. risk areas. Clearly define institutional responsibilities. Reduce agricultural Limited land tenure security. Lack of land Land tenure reform. Develop land use zoning plan Implement land use zoning regulations. land degradation. use zoning. Limnited availability of and regulations. Capacity building in the Ministries Encourage intensification, land management, intensification inputs and of alternative of Agriculture, NGOs, and cooperatives to improve soil conservation, and agroforestry projects and cropping and cultivation techniques (e.g. extension programs to small farmers. programs. Create a framework for small soil conservation practices). farmer credit mechanisms Foster sustainable high Poor data collection and management. Capacity building in state ministries for information Encourage environmentally and socially value fisheries Open access to resource. Negligible management, monitoring, and enforcement. Initiate sustainable aquaculture and altemative management. monitoring and enforcement of regulations. yield and effort monitoring programs. Enforce key livelihood projects. Implement market based Limited altemative community level regulations. Evaluate applicability of market based incentives, as appropriate. Provide the economic activities. Inadequate recognition incentives. Enforce community resource ownership. framework for improved fish processing of community resource ownership. Allow agencies to retain enforcement revenue. infrastructure. Undeveloped fish processing infrastructure. Reduce deforestation Limited land and tree tenure security. Lack Enforce land and tree rights. Enforce existing Implement economic mechanisms. Encourage and loss of of monitoring and enforcement of regulations. Develop economic mechanisms to the sustainable development of smallholder biodiversity. regulations. Very limited forest and improve resource management and conservation. timber, agroforestry, and NTFPs programs. biodiversity information. Implicit subsidies Conservation and resource management capacity Foster integrated conservation and for forest clearing. Weak public sector building in state forestry departments, NGOs, and development projects and programs. Upgrade conunitment to conservation. Lack of communities. Expand forest and biodiversity the status of key protected areas and develop protection of sites of high biodiversity. information collection and management. Refine and new protected areas in valuable ecosystems. implement EIA regulations. Allow agencies to Improve timber processing efficiency. retain enforcement revenue. Control expansion of hiadequate control programs. No Implement available control methods. Establish Foster NGO/community control programs. water hyacinth. eradication solution available. control and eradication research programs. Initiate Develop small scale harvesting programs. utilization pilot program. Adopt models used in other countries (e.g. Cote d'Ivoire). Improve management Absence of enforcement of regulations. Enforce existing regulations for waste management. Provide incentives for establishment of of municipal wastes: Incomplete regulatory framework. Lack of Establish effluent standards. Require secondary effective and efficient waste management and sewage and solid economic incentives for resource wastewater treatment in largest urban areas. water supply in urban and rural areas. wastes. conservation. Insufficient infrastructure. Develop and implement user charges for water and Evaluate and support privatization of select Inadequate waste management investment waste services. Technical assistance and training municipal services. policies. Limited institutional capacity. for relevant state and municipal agencies. xxi Policy Objective Major Constraints Proposed Short Term Actions Proposed Medium Term Actions Reduce generation of Limited data on sources. No enforcement Prepare THS emissions inventory. Provide Enforce compliance schedules for major waste toxic and hazardous of regulations. Lack of market based information, technical assistance and training in generators, including parastatals. Develop substances (THS). incentives. Insufficient institutional THS management to SEPAs and targeted facilities. hazardous waste tracking system. Provide the capacity. State ownership of many of the Incorporate incentives into regulatory framework. framework for the establishment of reduction largest facilities. Lack of technical Establish realistic compliance schedules for major and recycling programs, secure disposal expertise and knowledge of international waste generators, including parastatals. Develop facilities, and treatment centers. best practices in regulatory agencies and reduction, recycling, treatment, and disposal waste generators. options. Reduce emissions Limited information. High lead Commission vehicle emission and mass transit Support mass transit initiatives. Support from vehicles. concentration in fuel. Incomplete studies. Regulate improved fuel formulations. natural gas vehicle fleet development and regulatory framework. Limited technical Create incentives for increasing demand for refinery retrofits. Inplement mass transit capacity. Limited mass transit. Absence of unleaded fuel. Capacity building in SEPAs and program, if appropriate. Establish incentive urban transport planning. vehicle repair shops. Initiate urban transport framework for vehicle and repair shop planning. improvements. Implement urban transport plans. Address key social Limited recognition of the linkages Include population concerns in planning, programs Establish agricultural, NTFPs, and business issues with population between population growth, environmental and budgets. Train state agencies, NGOs, and training and extension services for women. emphasis. degradation, and reduced economic community organizations to disseminate family Expand nutrition programs. Provide the productivity. Lack of incentives to reduce planning, health, and nutrition information. framework for improved infrastructure. family size. Limited educational Strengthen community health clinics. Encourage Increase investment in female education and opportunities for women. Limited contraceptive distribution, especially by the private child survival programs. distribution of contraceptives. sector. Improve incentives for women's education and for smaller families. 1. INTRODUCTION The Niger Delta is one of the largest deltas in the worki Located in southeastern Nigeria, it covers over 20,000 square kilometers. Rivers and Delta State make up approximately 80 percent of the Niger Delta. The two states produce 75 percent of Nigeria's petroleum, by far the country's largest export. Despite the vast hydrocarbon reserves, the region remains poor and infrastructure is largely undeveloped Subsistence agriculture and fishing, supplemented by forest products, are the most important sources of livelihood for rural communities. Yet unsustainable exploitation and environmental degradation are increasingly impairing the natural resource base on which the rural communities dependi To assess the critical environmental and social concerns facing the Niger Delta, this report employs an analyticalframework that emphasizes the linkages between economic activities and environmental degradation. A. ECOLOGICAL SETTING 1.1 The Niger Delta is one of the world's largest wetlands, covering over 20,000 km in southeastern Nigeria.' The states that are the focus of this study, Rivers State and Delta State, comprise approximately 80 percent of the Niger Delta. Rivers State covers two-thirds of the Niger Delta. Around 75 percent of the state is riverine and regularly inundated with water. In Delta State, the percentage of floodplain drops to about 50 percent and the state includes another 15 to 20 percent of the Niger Delta. 1.2 The Niger Delta receives inputs from a total catchment area of 2.23 million km2 (the third largest in Africa behind the Zaire and the Nile) and has the fourth largest average annual discharge in Africa: 180 billion m3 (Rangeley et al. 1994, 4). The delta is a prism that was formed by the accumulation of sedimentary deposits transported by the Niger and Benue Rivers. Within the delta floodplain, the river splits into six major tidal channels and innurnerable smaller outlets. Fluvial sediments are deposited throughout the delta with sand and silt suspension during both high and low flood regimes. Construction of dams along the Niger during the last twenty-five years has significantly modified flow regimes and sediment deposition. Tidal currents, which range up to 1.5 m/sec, determine sediment settling patterns near the coast. 1.3 Annual rainfall is very high, ranging from 3000 mm to 4500 mm. Rainfall peaks in July and :September. The dry season occurs in December through February. The mean monthly temperature is 27'C and humidity oscillates around 80 percent (Rivers SEPA, 1993, 2). The Niger Delta. covers a large area of Nigeria and depending on the political, ecological, or hydrological definition of what constitutes the delta, it includes significant portions of Rivers, Delta, Ondo, and Akwa Ibom states. This study concentrates on the riverine and coastal areas of Rivers and Delta state. - 2 - 1.4 The delta can be roughly categorized into four ecological zones: coastal barrier islands, mangroves, freshwater swamp forests, and lowland rainforests (Table 1.1). The hydrological boundaries between ecological zones are fluid and depend on seasonal river flows. Salinity rises during the dry season when low river flows allow greater salt water intrusion upstream. The high rainfall and river discharge during the rainy season combined with the low, flat terrain and poorly drained soils result in extensive flooding and erosion. Over 80 percent of the delta is seasonally flooded, including all of the swamp forest, except the riverbank levees (The Rivers Chiefs, 1992, 3-1). During most years, only select elevated areas remain dry. The flooding causes severe and extensive riverbank erosion. When the flood waters recede, the channels that spread out across the delta leave swamps and pools that drain only poorly, if at all. This is because sediment deposition blocks the few outlets which might otherwise be available. Through erosion, water accumulation, and sediment deposition, the Niger Delta is constantly reshaped by flooding. A dynamic equilibrium between flooding, erosion and sediment deposition is the defining characteristic of the delta ecosystem. However, since the construction of the Kainji Dam on the Niger River in the late 1960s, peak discharge volumes have declined by approximately 30 percent, disrupting the hydrological balance. B SOCIAL FEATURES 1.5 In the Niger Delta, an expanding poor rural and urban population makes most resource and land use decisions. Their decisions are being driven by a lack of development, stagnant agricultural productivity, negligible opportunities in urban areas, rapid population growth, and tenuous property rights. Based on the 1991 census, the populations of Rivers and Delta States are estimated to be 3.98 million and 2.57 million, respectively. In both states, approximately 70 percent of the inhabitants live in rural delta communities (Ministry of Health, Rivers State, 1994). The average population density for Rivers State is 1.95 people/ha and for Delta State is 1.38 people/ha (Western Africa Department, 1990, 116). However, the state level statistics are misleading since the wetland ecology of the region restricts habitation to the relatively small area of higher elevation. Thus, densities per habitable area are very high (Map 5). 1.6 Poverty. Despite its vast oil reserves, the region remains poor. GNP per capita is below the national average of US$280. Unemployment in Port Harcourt, the capital of Rivers State, is 30 percent and is believed to be equally high in the rural areas of both states. The rural population commonly fish or practice subsistence agriculture, and supplement their diet and income with a wide variety of forest products. Education levels are below the national average and are particularly low for women. While 76 percent of Nigerian children attend primary school, this level drops to 30-40 percent in some parts of the Niger Delta. The poverty level in the Niger Delta is exacerbated by the high cost of living. In the urban areas of Rivers State, the cost of living index is the highest in Nigeria (Rivers State (urban): 783; Lagos (urban): 609) (Canagarajah, Ngwafon, and Thomas, 1994). 1.7 Data on poverty levels in the Niger Delta region do not exist, although some information is available at the state level. However, state averages are of limited use in assessing poverty in the delta because they include the wealthier upland regions thereby masking the degree of poverty in the riverine and coastal areas (the focus of this study). In addition, most data collection occurred before the creation of Delta State, and the Bendel State figures, which include a large upland area now known as Edo State, further dilute the relevance of the information to the delta. The World Bank study, The Evolution of Poverty and Welfare in Nigeria (1985-1992), found that the percentage of Nigerians living below a poverty line of N395.41 fell from 43 percent to 33 percent between 1985 and 1992 (Canagarajah Ngwafon, and Thomas, 1994). Both Rivers and the former Bendel state poverty levels were consistently below the national average, with Bendel showing significant improvement (1985: 42 percent; 1992: 16 percent)2 and Rivers not improving as dramatically (1985: 36 percent; 1992: 29 percent). The figures for southern Nigeria, which include the former Bendel State and Rivers State, also dropped significantly (rural: 42 percent to 26 percent; urban: 29 percent to 15 percent). In the rural southeast, which includes the delta region, the proportion of people living beneath the poverty line fell, but poverty severity increased slightly from 0.075 in 1985 to 0.079 in 1992. Although the proportion of people living under the poverty line in Rivers State fell, all indicators of extreme poverty for the state increased, but still remained below the Nigerian average. For example, the percentage of people in extreme poverty (living below a poverty line of N197.71) increased from 3 percent to 7 percent. If data for the Niger Delta region was available, it is expected that poverty indicators would be considerably worse than the state averages because of the poorer socio- economic conditions in the riverine areas compared with the upland areas. 1.8 Housing and Infrastructure Within the riverine areas, most people live on the elevated areas to avoid flooding. Housing conditions are generally poor, with only one-fifth of rural housing considered physically sound (Nest, 1991, 207). During floods, which in some areas last for over half the year, drinking water often becomes contaminated causing high levels of bacterial, viral, and parasitic outbreaks (Linden, 1993, 4). Water borne diseases are also a severe problem during the dry season because water supplies are often inadequate to dilute contaminants. Not surprisingly, water related diseases exert an enormous social and economic toll in the Niger Delta. These problems are exacerbated by the fact that both urban and rural infrastructure is poor - electrification, water supply, and sanitation levels are very low. The State Ministries of Health report that just 20-25 percent of rural communities and 45-50 percent of urban centers have access to safe drinking water. Similarly, adequate sanitation is available only to 25 percent of Delta State and 12 percent of Rivers State residents compared to the national average of 28 percent. No municipal wastewater treatment facilities exist in either state. As a result of the extensive flooding, transportation is difficult in the riverine areas. 1.9 Social Organization. The people of the Niger Delta are comprised of distinct ethnic groups. Six major language groups and twenty-six minor language groups exist in River State alone (Alagoa and Tamuno, 1989, 43). In some cases, trading, migration, and cultural links have blurred these distinctions, while in others, oil related boundary conflicts sharpen 2 If the data were separated between the Delta and Edo State areas of the former Bendel State, the poverty indicators for Delta would probably be similar to the Rivers State figure because of the similar resource base, environment, and socio-economic conditions. -4- distinctions (e.g., Ijo/Biseni and Ekpeye/Engenni conflicts) (NDWC, 1995, 1). Women play a very significant role in the social and economic organization of riverine communities. In addition to infant and child care, they contribute at least half of the agricultural labor, operate most of the retail sector, and process virtually all artisanal fish catches. Since a larger proportion of men migrate to urban centers, women also provide continuity to community organizations and structures. The relatively rapid development of oil exploitation has greatly increased immigration into the region, particularly into Port Harcourt. This rapid flux of new populations has significantly disrupted many communities. 1.10 Most communities are led by a council of chiefs who set community policies. Elders advise the chiefs and reinforce their authority. A group of young males usually implement policies and enforce social rules. Women's associations are also common (Alagoa and Tamuno, 1989, 94). With social unrest prevalent in many parts of the delta, these traditional social structures have broken down in many communities and have yet to be replaced by alternative forms of government. 1.11 Resource Ownership. Traditionally, families and communities, rather than individuals, held rights to most rural land. Individuals who wished to obtain land could barter with the village chief or council. Today all land is legally vested in the state government. However, individuals, families, and communities continue to engage in land. Women were historically excluded from owning land, however, in most communities this is no longer the case (Alagoa and Tamuno, 1989, 73). The federal government owns all mineral rights - a source of anger for communities in which oil development is going on. Except for timber trees, which are state property, forests are community owned and managed. Communities also control stretches of rivers and creeks. C. SECTORAL CHARACTERISTICS 1.12 Industry. The petroleum sector dominates the Nigerian economy. Since 1973, oil has made up more than 90 percent of total exports and 80 percent of federal government revenue. At the end of 1992, proven reserves of petroleum stood at 17.9 billion barrels, sufficient for 24 more years of production at current levels (around 2 million barrels per day - about 3 percent of world production). Most of Nigeria's oil and gas reserves and production are located in the Niger Delta. Rivers and Delta States together produce about 75 percent of Nigeria's petroleum. Their oil production alone comprised about 56 percent (US$3.9 billion) of estimated national government revenues in 1992. Proven reserves of natural gas amounted to 3.4 trillion m' in 1992 (approximately 1000 times the volume of oil reserves). In 1989, Nigeria produced 2,267 mmcfd of natural gas, of which 1,690, or 75 percent, was flared into the atmosphere (ESMAP [Energy Sector Management Assistance Programme], 1993, 45). Most of the gas flaring occurs in the Niger Delta region. 1.13 Since 1979, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) has operated joint venture equity participation agreements with major foreign oil producers. Shell Petroleum Development Company is the largest producer in the country, with about 40 percent of total production (800,000 barrels per day). The other major onshore producers are Agip (150,000 bpd) and Elf (250,000 bpd). The principal offshore producers are Chevron (300,000) and Mobil (400,000). Chevron has prospecting licenses for onshore areas which may be developed in the future. 1.14 Although petroleum exploration and production are by far the largest industry in the Niger Delta, numerous other subsectors operate there as well. These include steel works, metal fabrication, food processing, rubber and plastics, petroleum refineries, and paint. The Industrial Directory for Rivers State lists over 500 companies, but most employ fewer than 10 people. Only 112 companies employ more than 50 workers (Linden, 1993, 12). Two of the three operating refineries in Nigeria and two petrochemical plants are located in the delta. The Delta Steel facility outside of Warri is the largest steel plant in West Africa. The National Fertilizer Company (NAFCON) fertilizer plant located near Port Harcourt is the only fertilizer plant in southern Nigeria. Other large facilities in the delta include the Afiican Timber and Plywood mill at Sapele and the Delta Glass Industry at Ughelli. In Rivers State, the medium and large scale industries are concentrated on the Trans Amadi industrial estate in Port Harcourt, and include plastics and rubber, food processing, metallurgical, pharmnaceutical, and chemical companies. 1.15 Agriculture. Agricultural land covers about 278,000 ha in Rivers State (about 16 percent of the state) and employs the largest percentage of the work force in both states. The principal crops are cassava, plantain, and yam. Shifting cultivation is the major form of agriculture, but is less significant in areas benefiting from flood deposited sediments which restore fertility without requiring long fallow periods. Traditionally, communities managed farmlands as common property resources with areas being communally cut down and burned (The Rivers Chiefs, 1992, 69). On average, fields are cultivated for one or two years (two to four crop cycles) and then left fallow for three to five years. Agriculture is concentrated in the lowland rainforest ecozone and the levees of the freshwater forest zone. It is less important, but growing, in the barrier island zone and largely non-existent in the mangroves. Similarly, while smaller numbers of livestock are kept in the mangrove zone, goats, pigs, ducks, and especially chickens are more common in the other ecozones. Livestock is primarily for household consumption and rarely raised commercially. 1.16 Land degradation and flooding are the principal constraints to agriculture in the fresh water forests zone. Agriculture is limited to areas with sufficiently short flooding periods to allow for a complete growing season. Lack of water management makes even rice cultivation difficult and keeps yields low (The Rivers Chiefs, 1992, 68). Agricultural land degradation has forced many farmers to switch from high value and high nutrient demanding crops, like yams and peppers, to less demanding, but less valuable crops, particularly cassava (Linden, 1993, 7, 10). 1.17 Fishing. The contiguous coastline of 360 kilometers (larger than the coastlines of many West African countries) and vast areas of wetlands offer major fishing potential which is reflected in the economies of both states. In both states, the artisanal sector, which includes over 400,000 fishermen, is far more significant than the small local industrial fleet. Conflicts between artisanal fishermen and trawlers illegally fishing close to shore are increasing. Available evidence indicates that overfishing is causing a decline in marine and coastal fish stocks, but sound data and maximum sustainable yields are not available. The construction of -6- dams along the Niger has also reduced fish and shell fish stocks in both the coastal and riverine systems. Industrial fish processing is constrained by very limited capacity for frozen fish storage. D. Analytical Framework: Environmental Linkages 1.18 The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the environmental issues that constrain environmentally sustainable development in the Niger Delta. To accomplish this objective, the most critical environmental issues are assessed in terms of their: (i) direct and indirect causes, and (ii) direct and indirect impacts on human health, economic activities, and ecological systems. Strategic options for redressing environmental degradation are also presented. 1.19 Linkages between poverty and population growth leading to environmental degradation are evident in both the rural and urban areas of the Niger Delta. In the rural areas, poverty and population growth have directly caused or exacerbated the effects of most of the major environmental concems: erosion, flooding, agricultural land degradation, fisheries stock depletion, deforestation and forest degradation, and biodiversity loss. Similarly, the overriding urban issues of flooding, municipal solid waste, and sewage are also closely tied to poverty and population growth. The environmental, social, and indirect causes sections (Chapters 2, 3, and 4) present and analyze these linkages. 1.20 One of the aims of this paper is to provide greater understanding of the explicit linkages between economic activity and environmental degradation. Economic analysis, therefore, has been integrated into the report, both in identifying the role of policy failures in environmental degradation, and in the analysis of priorities. In analyzing the priorities, a series of examples has been prepared, drawing as much as possible on information from the Niger Delta, which illustrates a number of the economy-environment linkages through explicit valuations of the economic costs of degradation. It should be recognized that data are, at this juncture, still relatively scarce and the analyses are based on the best available information at the time of completing this report. Appropriately, many of the valuation procedures use estimated values of resources 'at-risk', rather than valuation of resource degradation as a well- established consequence of some well-defined cause. 1.21 In addition to this introduction, the analytical framework is broken down into five additional chapters: Chapter 2 - Environmental Problems and Challenges to Sustainable Development. This section examines the environmental problems of the region, which are divided into three categories by the type of resource impacts: (1) land resource degradation, (2) renewable resource degradation, and (3) environmental pollution. The chapter emphasizes quantitative information, where available, and environmental-economic linkages. A review of relevant legislation and current responses to environmental degradation is also presented to assess their coverage, successes, and limitations. -7- * Chapter 3 - Social Issues and Challenges to Sustainable Development. With the strong links between poverty and environmental degradation in the region, this chapter discusses the major social constraints to sustainable development, the impact of environmental degradation on human health, and resource use conflicts. A review of relevant legislation and current responses to social issues is also presented to assess their coverage, successes, and limitations. * Chapter 4 - The Causes of Environmental Problems. This section examines the root causes of environmental and social problems using an analytical framework that distinguishes between population changes, resource ownership, market failures, and policy failures. * Chapter 5 - Assessing Environmental Priorities. Given the limited resources available to address the issues presented in the report, this section determines the relative priority of the major environmental problems. Chapter 6 - Strategic Options. The integrated coastal zone management model is discussed as a useful paradigm for holistically combining sectoral interventions. Specific policy and project options that address the priority environmental problems are reviewed. 2. ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES AND CHALLENGES TO SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT The environmental problems of the Niger Delta have been grouped into three categories based on the type of resources affected: land resource degradation, renewable resource degradation, and environmental pollution. These categories are only one of several different alternatives for classifying the problems; however, they provide a suitable framework for improving the understanding of environmental issues, assessing priorities, and developing options for mitigating the problems. Although categories strictly based on media or source type would be more orthodox, they are not suited to wetland ecosystems where it is difficult to differentiate between land and water systems. In addition, the framewvork presented has the flexibility necessary to better highlight the principal environmental problems. For example, a source based approach would dilute the severity of the biodiversity loss issue. Land resource degradation refers to actions which reduce the amount or quality of land in the region. Renewable resources are classified as a discrete category because of their ability to produce sustained yields if properly managed The environmental pollution problems are grouped together because they use and frequently stress waste sinks. A. LAND RESOURCE DEGRADATION Flooding, Erosion and Land Subsidence 2.1 The Niger River Delta is the largest delta in Africa. It contains about 20,000 km2 of wetlands within two meters above present sea level (Ibe and Awosika, 1989). Along the ocean coast of the delta there are about 20 barrier islands consisting principally of low sand ridges with a maximum elevation of 1 to 3 meters above mean high tide. The Niger River Delta has been formed by, and continues to be highly influenced by rivers, mainly the Niger and Benue. Over geological time, these rivers have transported sediments to the delta and the sea. High water levels in the rivers during the rainy season flood extensive areas of the delta. Sediments brought to the sea via the rivers have replenished the delta and the coastal islands and have mitigated erosion by the sea. A large portion of the delta is directly influenced by the sea; tidal influences are felt up to 90 kIn inland from the coastline (NDWC, 1995, 3). 2.2 During the last 30 years, the Niger River has been dammed for hydroelectric power and irrigation at several locations and the water flow has been manipulated extensively. The major dan projects on the Niger and its tributaries are at Kainji (1968), Jebba (1983), Goronyo (1984), Bakalori on the Sokoto Rima, and Shiroro (1984) on the Kaduna tributary (Bourn, 1992, 5; NEST). Although no dams have been built on the Benue because of its high sediment load (11 x 106 m3/yr compared with 4.6 x 106 m3/yr for the Niger), seven have been proposed on it or on its tributaries (NEST; The Rivers Chiefs, 17). It is estimated that around 70% of the sediment transport via these rivers into the sea has been lost because of the dams (Table 2.1) (Collins and Evans, 1986). Much of the sediment which no longer flows to the - 9 - delta has been accumulating behind the dams, especially in the Kainji reservoir. Unconfirmed reports by scientists at the University of Benin in Edo State indicate that the depth of this reservoir has decreased from about 19 m in 1970 to 14 m in 1984 and 9 m in 1991. 2.3 Although information on sediment loads is unavailable for the Niger River, the data on four other large rivers presented in Box 2.1 illustrates the dramatic losses of sediment load that can occur. The smallest loss of sediment yield, which occurred in the Mississippi River, still represents a 40% reduction. On a global level, loss of reservoir capacity is estimated to be 1% of gross capacity per year (Mahmood, 1987, 8). It should be noted that very large regional differences exist. The Yellow River in China carries the highest sediment load in the world, an average annual load of 1,600 million tons with a maximum (in 1933) of 3,900 million tons. It was clear during the planning stage that the construction of dams in the Yellow River would cause drastic changes to the water and sediment regimes. However, technical modifications of the dams and the water use schemes were made with considerable success (Box 2.2). 2.4 The loss of sediment input to the delta via the rivers is exacerbating coastal and river bank erosion (Picture 2.1). In many areas along the coast, the erosion caused by waves, currents and other oceanic processes is estimated to range from tens of meters per year to over 100 m per year (Ibe, 1988 and 1993). Coastal erosion is pronounced in selected areas, particularly Brass, Bonny, and Sangana. Estimates of coastal erosion at Brass are 16-19 meters annually (Oyegun, 1990). Table 2.1: Sediment Load Estimate for the Niger Delta (106 m3/yr) Pre-dam Post-dam Suspended Sediment 16 4.8 Bedload 0.9 0.27 Allen recorded the pre-dam data in 1965. The post-dam estimate is based on the 70% reduction estimated by Collins and Evan (1986). 2.5 Construction of breakwaters and jetties can also cause coastal recession. For example, at the mouth of the Escravos River, Ogborodo beach has receded by 20 m per year since breakwater construction in the early 1960s (Beak Consultants Ltd, 1994, 5.1). Tidal erosion occurs in the southern parts of the delta as a result of high tides in combination with waves. A numlber of townships and islands are affected, including Abbonema, Ke and Isaka. Other factors that contribute to coastal erosion are sand and gravel mining, dredging, reclamation of land, as well as oil, gas and water abstraction and the removal of vegetation (mangroves). The cost to the Nigerian economy of coastal erosion along the entire coastline is expected to be approximately US$150 million annually (Western Africa Department, 1990, 109). Since the delta encompasses 60% of Nigeria's coastline, the costs of erosion in the region can be expected to be in the range of US$90 million annually. - 10- Picture 2.1 Example of Coastal Erosion in Rivers State Box 2.1 Reductions in Sediment Loads as a Consequence of Dam Construction in Major Rivers River Before Dam Construction After Dam Construction (tons/kin2) Colorado River (N. Am.) 211 0.2 Nile (Africa) 37.5 0.0 Indus (Asia) 434 103 Mississippi (N. Am.) 107 64.2 Source: Mahmood, 1987. -~~~~~~~-1 Box 2.2 Mitigation of Sedimentation in Sanmenxia Dam and Other Dams Along the Yeflow River, China. The Sanmenxia Dam was completed in 1960 and is still in operation. The following measures allowed passage of high sediment concentrations. - lowering of the water table; - excavating bypass tunnels; - opening bottom sluices; - rebuilding of penstocks as conduits; and - installing low head turbines. Source: Qishun & Yuqian in Sundborg & Rapp (1986) 2.6 River bank erosion occurs at the end of the annual floods when saturated river bank soils become unstable and collapse into the river. When dry, the soils contract and crack, but remain cohesive. However, when saturated, they are much less cohesive and fall into the rivers as flood waters recede and no longer support them. The affected land is frequently fertile and intensively farmed, such as in Agbere, Odoni, Sabagreiya, and Asamabiri areas. 2.7 Sand mining, which is common in rivers near the glass industries of Warri, increases the rate and extent of riverbank erosion and reduces downstream sediment deposition (Picture 2.2) (Ivbijaro, personal communication, 1994). Communities report that wakes from large vessels also increase the rate of erosion (Osundu, 1994). River water tables may vary as much as ten meters (River Niger) and six to eight meters (Rivers Nun and Forcados) between low water during dry periods and high water during rainy seasons. 2.8 It is estimated that close to 400 ha of land is lost annually to river bank erosion (Abam, 1995). With the present trend, about 40% of the current inhabited land in the delta will be lost within 30 years and about 750,000 people displaced. Since riverbank levees are the most populated areas and are intensively cultivated, riverbank erosion results in the loss of some of the most valuable land in the delta. - 12 - Picture 2.2 Sand Dredging Downstream of Yenagoa 2.9 Sheet, rill and gully erosion is most serious primarily outside of the floodplain and in farmlands upstream of the Niger Delta, but the effects are felt also in the delta. It is caused by rain or surface run-off, particularly in areas where shifting cultivation is practiced, and is especially severe in areas too steep for sustainable cultivation. Such areas include many locations in Oyigbo LGA. It can be expected that soil erosion caused by poor upstream agriculture and forestry practices will reduce the impact of the dams decreasing sediment loads. However, no data are available to support this theory. 2.10 A medium term result of the upstream damming of rivers flowing towards delta, is that flooding problems in the lowlands decreased considerably. Scientists at the University of Science and Technology report that dams reduce peak discharge volumes by 30% on average. Before the Kainji Dam came into operation the aqera,ge yearly discharge at the confluence of Benue and Niger Rivers at Lokoja was 21 x 10 m, that is a daily average of 7,000 m /s. Immediately following the start of operations at the Kainji Dam an average drop of 20% was olbserved. The disciharge was then constant until 1981 when another drastic drop from 7,000 m /sec. to 3,000 m /sec (Abam, 1995). With less intensive flooding, low lying areas that were previously inundated became habitable, leading to immigration into these areas. Reportedly, a large proportion of the rural population increase since the construction of the dams have settled in such areas. As a result of the accumulation of silt in the dam, the buffering capacity - 13 - of the reservoirs on the river flow has gradually decreased, such that the area flooded is expanding towards the pre-dam level. Picture 2.3 Flooding in Sangana, Rivers State - July 1994 i. te ~~~~~~~.. .. , ..................................... 2.11 The combination of increased flooding and higher population densities in flood prone areas has intensified the human and economic impact of annual flooding (Picture 2.3) (Table 2 - vol. II). In Rivers State three Local Government Areas, SILGA, EKELGA, and ABOLGA, are most severely affected. The new, more severe, flooding regime disrupts the lives of several hundred thousand people. The total area of arable land that can no longer be cultivated owing to annual floods amounts to some 700,000 hectares. The flooding lasts four to five months annually. During those months, river levels may rise up to 8 to 10 meters from their lowest dry season levels. In 1988 alone, 211 villages were inundated partially or wholly for a period of two weeks or more. The water level rose at a rate of 5 to 7 cm per day throughout September 1988 forcing thousands of people to seek shelter at higher elevations, leaving crops and houses to be destroyed (Ministry of Works and Transport, Rivers State Government 1988). Flooding was even more severe in 1994 and caused similar widespread damage. 2.12 Land subsidence has been reported as a possible factor contributing to flooding in the Niger Delta. Several factors, including natural geologic processes and hydrocarbon extraction, may be the cause. Land subsidence can cause: (1) coastal flooding, (2) coastal erosion from increase wave penetration inland, (3) forest inundation, and (4) salt water intrusion. - 14- According to Haq (1993), there is little empirical data on the local subsidence rates in the delta. In the southwestern part of the delta, subsidence rates of 5 mm per year since the last glaciation have been inferred. The extensive oil and water extraction from subsurface layers, and the reduction in the sediment input caused by upstream dams may have accelerated the local subsidence. However, since oil extraction occurs at very deep levels (4,000 - 8,000 m below the surface) it is unlikely that subsidence from that level would be significantly manifested on the surface (Abam, 1995, 13). The (1993) estimated that the delta was subsiding 25 mm per year. 2.13 In neighboring Ondo State, coastal recession of more than 1,200 m between 1972 and 1991 is believed to be related to the dredging of a navigation canal and land subsidence. The navigation canal may allow large waves to reach further inland, increasing erosion. The channel may also be causing salt water intrusion and inundation leading to the destruction of 2,000 ha of inland forests. Oil and gas exploitation from the many wells in the area may be causing land subsidence as host and overburden sediments consolidate (Beak Consultants Ltd., 1994 ). 2.14 The reduction of the freshwater discharge in the lower delta from upstream dams has increased salt water intrusion into the delta. However, the absence of hydrological data makes quantification and prioritization of the associate problems difficult. Saline levels are highest in January during low river flows and can be significant even 90 km upstream on the Benin River, northeast of Warri, and Port Harcourt on the New Calabar River (Ashton-Jones and Douglas, 1994, 95). The saltwater wedge is penetrating deeply into the delta particularly during the dry seasons. This has reportedly caused drinking water wells to become saline. Dredging of rivers and the extraction of sand and gravel has also increased the risk of saline water penetration into the ground water layers (Abam, 1995). The lowered freshwater input via the rivers has decreased nutrients from land runoff via rivers and streams. This has produced a variety of effects on the flora and fauna of the lower delta, including decreasing fish stocks. The reduction in the input of nutrients as a result of the decreased freshwater discharge has significantly reduced fish catches (Fisheries Section). The potential issue of reduced water supplies is discussed in Box A. 1 - vol. II. 2.15 Regulatory Framework and Institutions.' Flood and erosion control was originally mandated to the Niger Delta Basin Development Authority under the 1987 Decree establishing the Authority. Numerous other agencies include erosion and flood management as part of their mandates, including FEPA, the SEPAs, the State Ministries of Works and Transport, OMPADEC, and the Federal Department of Flood and Erosion. However, none of the agencies significantly addresses flooding or erosion problems. The high cost of control measures and the overlapping jurisdictions have limited mitigation to a small number of community level erosion projects. For example, the Federal Government has recently constructed erosion protection structures in Opobo Town, Brass, Queenstown, Abonnema, and Bonny, and OMPADEC is implementing 25 shoreline protection and reclamation projects (The Rivers Chiefs, 1992, 46). No delta wide flood and erosion management plan exists. The principal constraints to efficacious flood and erosion management are: (i) limited funds; (ii) 1 See Annex K for additional information - 15 - lack of implementation of mandates; (iii) lack of data and no region wide risk assessment; (iv) absence of long term planning; and (v) overlapping jurisdictions. Impact of Climate Change 2.16 Several studies have reported on global warming and its possible impact on sea level rise in West Africa and Nigeria (see for example Awosika et al. 1990, French et al. 1994, Milliman et al. 1989, Nicholls et al. 1993) (Annex B). The conclusion from these analyses is that the Niger River Delta is particularly sensitive to sea level rise because of its low elevation over extensive areas. The risks of sea level rise are also high because erosion and flooding are already spatially widespread and severe in selected areas. A projected sea level rise of around 1 m per 100 years (The International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) scenario) would have grave consequences for large parts of the delta. Under this scenario, the sea would transgress the barrier islands and subsequent erosion would destroy much of the mangrove vegetation. Over 18,000 km2, or 2% of Nigeria's land area, including most of the Niger Delta is at risk (Nicholls et al. 1993). Land loss would primarily be due to the inundation of large areas of wetlands, particularly in the delta area. Economic activities, such as oil exploration and production, agriculture and fisheries would be disrupted. It could force up to 80% of the delta's population to migrate to higher ground. IPCC estimates property damage of approximately US$9 billion as a consequence of a 1m sea level rise over 100 years. Even the most conservative scenario, a sea-level rise of only 0.2 m, would put an area over 2,700 km2 at risk (Nicholls et al. 1993). It should be emphasized that none of these scenarios indicate an immediate danger, rather they predict a gradual increase of erosion and flooding problems (unless remedial measures are taken). However, extreme weather conditions may be more frequent and severe, causing significantly more damage than might otherwise be anticipated. Agricultural Land Degradation 2.17 Increasing populations require either more intensive agriculture on existing farms or an expansion of agricultural areas to feed the additional community members. In addition to regional population growth, a heavy influx of farmers into the delta from already degraded upland areas and immigrants attracted by oil development has increased population expansion in the region (NDWC, 1995, 3). Since agricultural inputs are generally not available or too expensive for most farmers in the Niger Delta, they have resorted to cultivating increasingly marginal land and increasing the frequency of cropping on existing plots. This is a common problem throughout sub-Saharan Africa (Cleaver and Schreiber, 1992). 2.18 Evidence of agricultural expansion since the 1 960s in the Niger Delta is widespread. In freshwater wetland forests, any new road is quickly followed by farmers establishing plots along the roadside. While farmers used to avoid the backswamps behind the levees, pressure for land has forced communities throughout the freshwater wetland ecozone to invest large amounts of labor in reclaiming small areas of the wetlands as farm plots (e.g., in Ekpeye, Isoko, and Ikwerre). In riverine areas, farmers are clearing prime forests for plantain cash cropping (NDWC, 1995, 2). Typical of the freshwater zone, the levees of the Anyama area - 16- were cleared and farmed by the 1960s. Species unable to move into the freshwater swamps, including elephants and chimpanzees, were driven to extinction (Ashton-Jones and Douglas, 1994, 89). The lowland rainforest areas were cleared even earlier and are still under severe population pressure. In the Ogoni region of the lowland rainforest, cassava, for the first time, is being grown in wet areas during the dry season to offset yield declines on established fields. Farmers are also resorting to cutting down forest shrines to meet the demand for agricultural land (Ashton-Jones and Douglas, 1994, 60). Federal and state governments subsidize extensification, through programs run by National Agricultural Land Development Agency, the School to Land Project, State Ministries of Agriculture, and NDBDA (Powell, 1990, 4). 2.19 Without additional capital inputs, intensification leads to declining yields from reduced soil fertility. Fallow periods shorten resulting in inadequate nutrient replenishment and poor soil structure. This is an unsustainable practice that mines soil fertility. It has been extensively studied in southeastern Nigeria. The studies clearly show that shorter fallow periods without additional inputs are closely tied to soil degradation and yield declines. A survey in neighboring Imo State in 1988 found that fallow periods have declined from a range of 1-9 years to 0-6 years: and are on average far less than the 5-7 years required to restore soil fertility (Goldman in Lal and Okigbo, 1990, 16). In addition to declining fertility, a reduced fallow forces communities to do without, or obtain from forests, products formerly supplied by fallow areas, such as stakes, food, fodder, and medicines. 2.20 Soil degradation induced yield reductions are more severe in the acid infertile soils of southeastern Nigeria than in the western regions of the country (Lal and Okigbo, 1990, 11). Researchers found that under continuous cropping in field trials in southeastern Nigeria yields declined by 65% for maize, 38% for yam, and 25% for cassava after four years (Odurukwe and Orji in Lal and Okigbo, 1990, 11). A study of several hundred farms just north of the delta determined that yields of yam, cocoyam, and cassava fell as fallow periods shortened and soil fertility declined (Armon in Lal and Okigbo, 1990, 14). These studies and others illustrate that in high population density areas of southeastern Nigeria, shortened fallow periods lead to soil degradation and lower yields. In a study of the impact of population pressure on land use around Onitsha, just north of the delta, Okafor found that increasing population pressure was correlated with smaller farms, fragmented fields, and shorter fallow periods. By the mid 1989s, fallow periods averaged only 3 years, a drop of 2.25 years from the mid 1970s and half the length of time required for fertility restoration (1988). Although no studies of agricultural yields or fallow periods have been conducted in the delta, sociological studies have consistently found that communities complain of reduced agricultural production (Ashton- Jones and Douglas, 1994, 10). In addition to anecdotal evidence of declining yields, the variety of crops planted in the delta has fallen. While intercropped systems of yams, maize, cassava, beans, cocoyams are the traditional farm crops, cassava has begun to dominate in many areas because it produces good yields even on soils with low nutrient concentrations, has few major insect pests, does not require staking, and can be grown all year (Daniel-Kalio, 1994). Declining yields combined with population pressure result in a cycle which forces farmers to expand into increasingly marginal areas that offer even lower returns to labor leading to further expansion. - 17- 2.21 Intensification, one of the solutions for addressing agricultural land degradation, does not have to involve expensive capital inputs (potential conservation problems with intensification are discussed in Box A.2 - vol. II). The compound farms of eastern Nigeria are cropped continuously for years without loss of yield because of heavy manuring with mulch, household wastes, and animal wastes. Perennial species also accumulate nutrients from deep soil layers which are recycled to shallow rooted species. While appropriate for small plots near houses, such intensive land management cannot be practiced on large plots because of its high labor requirements (Lal and Okigbo, 1990, 15). 2.22 Erosion and Flooding. Reduced sedimentation caused by upstream dams is believed to be decreasing agricultural productivity in the freshwater forest zone (see paragraphs 2.1 - 2.8). This problem appears to be most pronounced along the fringes of wetlands, where lower sediment transport retards the restoration of soil fertility because annual flooding may be depositing less silt. Until recently, high silt deposition reduced the need for farmers to resort to shifting cultivation. If sediment deposition is actually declining, the impact on agricultural yields will increase because the wetland fringes are the major area for current agricultural expansion. The impact of reduced sedimentation is compounded by sedimentation of the upstream reservoirs increasing flooding and washing away topsoil in the flood prone areas (David, 1994). Sediment losses within the delta may be partly offset by heavy gully and sheet erosion in upstream states depositing material in the delta. High floods of longer duration threaten crops with waterlogging and force farmers to harvest early. Riverbank erosion in the freshwater forest zone is exacerbated by land pressure which necessitates that farmers cultivate right to the edge of the levees. By converting the natural forests and reducing fallow periods, the soils are much more susceptible to erosion forces. 2.23 In the drier lowland rainforest area, sheet erosion may be a problem, but it has not been studied. Researchers have found that gully erosion is severe in large areas of the lowland ecozone, but is not common in the riverine areas (Lal and Okigbo, 1990, 18). Extensive gully erosion in Oyigbo LGA along the riverbanks has disrupted farming (Dike, 1994). In addition to inadequate soil conservation practices, poor road construction is a principal cause of gully erosion. For example, gully erosion is common along the Port Harcourt-Aba-Enugu road (Fubara in Lal and Okigbo, 1990, 18). 2.24 The Population and Agriculture Nexus. Since agricultural expansion continues to degrade large areas of forest, it is critical to understand the ultimate mechanisms driving land conversion. In the case of population growth in rural areas, it expands the labor pool available for both more intensive and more extensive agriculture. However, since labor productivity is probably low in the Niger Delta and inputs are not available to poor farmers, additional labor will have to be absorbed through extensification (which is limited by the relatively small area of arable land), the non-farm rural sector, or the urban sector (Larson, 1994, 681). The non- farm sector in the delta largely consists of fishing, which may already be exceeding the MSY, and activities which require intact forests (NTFPs and hunting). Migration to urban centers has already been very extensive, but is slowing because of the lack of opportunities. Consequently, extensification can be expected to remain critical for assimilating rural labor. - 18- 2.25 The population-agricultural nexus and the depletion of other renewable resources are particularly important because of (i) the direct impact on the environment; (ii) resource interconnections; and (iii) damage to the regenerative capacity of ecosystems (Pearce and Turner, 1990, 344). The nexus results in renewable resources being mined: soil fertility and forest products are degraded too rapidly for natural systems to regenerate them. The reiterative nature of the linkages leaves resource bases increasingly vulnerable to further damage because recovery between stresses is not sufficient. B. RENEWABLE RESOURCE DEGRADATION Fisheries Exploitation' 2.26 Sector Characteristics. The preservation of the freshwater swamp and mangrove ecosystems is crucial for the viability of a large coastal and wetland fishery. The annual value of sustainable harvesting of fish in the Niger Delta is estimated at N5 billion (Box 2.3). Fluctuations in captures, decreasing sizes of fish, and observations from fishers give evidence of declining stocks from overexploitation and habitat degradation. 2.27 Fishing is an important component in Nigeria's agricultural sector, comprising about 20% of production (Government of Nigeria, 1992). The present annual catch is estimated to cover about one third to one quarter of the total consumption of fish, 800,000 mt (FAO, 1993). Fish contribute to about 40% of per capita animal protein intake in Nigeria. This figure is considerably higher in coastal areas and along rivers and water bodies. In the delta, a large number of families consume molluscs (periwinkles), oysters, and dry shrimp daily, though these food items are not mentioned in the statistical data (Otobo, 1995). 2 Statistical records of catches are scarce and unreliable. Few data collectors operate in the region, and they do not have crafts or vehicles which are necessary to cover significant areas to collect data. Hence the fisheries data presented below should be regarded as indicative, rather than accurate. -19- Box 2.3 Value of Sustainable Management of Fisheries Total Annual Value of a Sustained Harvest3 N5 billion Net Present Value of a Sustained Harvest N50 billion Annual Value per fisherperson N35,000 Annual Value per Hectare N2,500 Source: Linddal, 1995. 2.28 The delta, being predominantly a floodplain habitat, is a very productive waterbody for fisheries and a critical nursery for offshore and upstream ecosystems (Powell, 1993, 7). The most important commercial species from marine and brackish waters are croakers (Pseudolithus spp.), bonga (Ethmalosa spp.), herrings (Sardinella spp.), catfish (Arius spp.), snappers (Luijanus spp.), mullets (Liza spp. and Mugil spp.), and shrimps (Penaeus spp.). Most important freshwater species include tilapias (Tilapia spp.), moonfishes (Citharinus spp.), carps (Labeo spp.), Heterobranchus, Chrysichthuys nigrodigitatus, and catfishes (e.g., Clarias spp.). 2.29 In addition to finfish, molluscs and crustacean harvesting is widespread and a critical economic activity for many riverine and mangrove communities (aquaculture is not well established - Box 2.4) . In the mangroves, periwinkles are a significant source of income and protein. Periwinkles are an excellent delta resource because they require no preservation for weeks and harvesting requires minimal capital (Powell, 1993, 77). They have been overfished in several areas (Powell et. al., 1987). Clams (such as Galatea pradoxa) are equally important to some freshwater swamp communities. Fishermen catch approximately 2,000 tons of shrimps off the coast of Nigeria. The major coastal species are Guinea shrimp (Parapenaeus longirostris) and pink shrimp (Penaeus notialis). The most important commercial brackish water species are Namatopalaemon hastatus (Amadi in Dublin-Green and Tobor, 1992, 16). 3 The average (shadow) price throughout the year is estimated to be 50 N/kg based on market prices (Table A.8). The total value of a sustained harvest of fish (100,000 tons per annum) is in the order of about 5 billion N. This harvest is from the delta, or species that had part of their life cycle in the delta. With a discount rate of 10 percent and constant prices and harvest level, the total value of the renewable fish resource is 50 billion N. With the estimated annual capture of 700 kg per full time fisher, the annual value of artisanal fishery is estimated at 35,000 N/fisher-year. This is a value comparable with other employment possibilities (valued at about 100 N/day). The value is a gross value but since the harvest efforts are assumed to have a low opportunity value, the value is approximated to net value. With the total delta (2 million h) supporting an annual fish production of 100,00 tons valued at N5 billion, the per hectare value is N2,500. Thus, the destruction of one hectare has an opportunity cost for fishing estimated at 2,500 N/ha. - 20 - Box 2.4 Aquaculture Riverine communities have yet to engage actively in aquaculture. Some development agencies have funded research and pilot programs, but the removal of large areas of mangroves for aquaculture, as seen in countries, such as the Philippines, Ecuador, and Indonesia, remains at the proposal stage. If large scale aquaculture does take off in the delta, a large range of environmental problems may be anticipated. Depending on the value of mangroves to local communities and for marine fisheries, the most significant impact can be the outright destruction of mangrove forests. As well as forest loss, inputs required for culture fisheries, including fertilizer, fish feeds, and pesticides can degrade water quality. Commercial fisheries infrastructure often modifies water and sediment flow regimes to the detriment of downstrearn communities and ecosystems. Culture operations usually rely on natural fish populations for stocking ponds which can decrease both natural populations and capture fisheries that rely on the mangroves and associated species. A well designed aquaculture program, which minimized its negative environmental impact, would improve the productivity of the delta. This option may not be available if estuarine water quality continues to decline because of other sectoral activities, including oil exploitation, unplanned municipal development and industries. Sufficient areas of mangroves should be preserved between and within the culture to allow for wild stocks of fish and other aquatic life to thrive and reproduce. Areas of intact mangroves would serve as natural filters for waste products from the cultures. Clearly, ecological changes from any major aquaculture developments should be assessed during the planning stage and closely monitored during implementation. 2.30 In both Rivers and Delta State most of the fishery is artisanal (small-scale).This subsector consistently contributes over 80% of the catches (national average). There are about 123,000 full-time and part-time artisanal fishermen in Rivers State and about 282,000 in Delta State. There has been a very significant increase in the number of fishermen during the last decade. Most of the artisanal fishing is carried out from wooden fishing canoes built by local craftsmen. The artisinal fishing is limited to the estuarine and immediate shore areas. Approximately 20% of Nigerian fishing canoes are equipped with outboard-engines, but the percentage of motorization is considerably higher in the coastal areas. An estimated 120 fishing and shrimping trawlers operate in the Niger Delta. In addition a small fleet of larger fishing trawlers operates in the EEZ between 30 and 200 nm from the coast. 2.31 In Rivers and Delta States, women carry out most fish preservation and trading. It is estimated that over 75% of the fish landed is preserved by traditional smoking methods. The capacity for freezing of fish is very limited and the total storage capacity in Nigeria for frozen fish is reported to be 29,000 tons (November 1992, Government of Nigeria). However, in mid 1994, no large commercial freezing facilities or ice plants were reported to be operating in Port Harcourt. This situation leads to high post-harvest losses and limits fish marketing beyond the immediate landing areas, except for smoked fish. 2.32 Exploitation and Conflicts with other Sectors. According to the Director General of the Nigerian Institute for Oceanography and Marine Research (NIOMR), Dr. Tobor, there are - 21 - no signs of overfishing in Nigerian waters. However, fisheries experts in the universities and elsewhere believe that overexploitation is a significant problem which is affecting most types of fisheries in the country.4 Expert consensus exists that the offshore and oceanic stocks of pelagic fishes are not well exploited, mainly because they are out of reach of the artisanal fishery. 2.33 The maximum sustainable yield for the fisheries of Nigeria has been estimated to be about 240,000 mt including coastal and brackish water fishery for finfish and prawns and some 30,000 mt of fish from offshore areas (Table A.4 - vol. II) (Tobor 1990). It should be emphasized that the MSY is difficult to estimate, particularly if catch, effort, and standing stock data are inadequate, which is the case in Nigeria. The official catch figures (Table A. 5 - vol. II) have greatly exceeded the estimated MSY for at least 12 of the last 14 years. During several years in the beginning of the 1980s they were more that double the MSY. The catch data from the Federal Department of Fisheries show that the total catches have varied drastically during the period 1980 to 1993 (Federal Department of Fisheries 1993) (Figure 2.1). FIGURE 2.1 INDEXED OFFICIAL CATCH FIGURES 180 160 140 - ' 1980 = 100 120 _ ' ,IGERIA 100- 8;0 --- - - BENDEL 60 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~- RIVERS 20 ' Ed. MSY for Nigeria 20 dS C 8 i) O X O -E CD ) 2.34 The very drastic variations in the catch figures may indicate that the fish stocks are heavily over-exploited. This inference is supported by scientists reporting that certain fish stocks had declined, e.g., sardines, snappers, croakers, and mackerels, and that the average body length of some of the most important commercial fish species have decreased during the last decade. A major problem in riverine areas is overharvesting of juveniles (NDWC, 1995, 5). 2.35 Updated estimates for the fish catches of Rivers State are not available, but official figures from 1980 to 1989 range between 16,469 and 107,469 mt (Table A.5 - vol. II, Figure 2.1). No estimate of the MSY of the fishery in Rivers State is available. However, the very drastic variations in the catches in Rivers State from 86,000 to 107,000 mt in 1980 to 1982, 4 Mr. Louis Abuah, Director of Fisheries, Asaba, Mrs. C. Iragurina, Ministry of Fisheries, Rivers State, Mr. P. Coates, Natural Conservation Foundation, Prof. Fubara, Dr. Bruce Powell, Rivers State University of Science and Technology, Prof. Austin B.M. Egborge, University of Benin. - 22 - decreasing to some 16,000 to 19,000 mt in 1986 to 1987 indicate that catches were well above the carrying capacity of the stocks for several years. The implications of continued fishing at the current levels are uncertain, but a general trend of decreasing catch volumes should be anticipated. A risk of total disappearance of the most valuable fish species also exists. Catch figures for Delta State (formerly Bendel State) are given in Table A.5 - vol. II: declines in catches and increased effort are not as significant as in Rivers State. 2.36 The number of licensed inshore trawlers and the catch per unit effort between 1980 and 1990 for all of Nigeria is shown in Table A.3 - vol. II. It is widely suspected that these figures are less than the actual catches due to more or less systematic errors in the reported figures (Otobo 1995). Nonetheless, the data do illustrate that while the total catch has not changed dramatically between 1984 and 1990, the growth in the fishing fleet has reduced the catch per effort by nearly 60%. An index of fishing effort based on the number of fisherpersons in Rivers and the former Bendel State also shows that catch per effort is declining. Catch per fisherperson fell annually from a high of 1.88 tons in 1983 for both states to 0.7 tons in Rivers State and 1.26 tons in Bendel State in 1989, the last year of available data (Table A.5 - vol. II) (Linddal, 1995, 19). 2.37 Trawling is carried out along the coast and in some of the estuaries. A legal no- trawling zone extends to 5 nm from the shore, however trawlers frequently fish in this zone causing conflicts between artisanal and industrial fishermen to flare up along the coasts of Rivers and Delta States. Damage is caused by the trawlers contributing to excessive fishing in the shallow areas, disturbing the benthic environment, and destroying the fishing gear used by artisanal fishermen. Recently some cases of illegal trawling have been brought to court in Rivers State. Other conflicts that affect the fishing sector are the activities of the oil production industry. In this case, oil spills occasionally taint fish and smear nets and other gear. Fishermen and riverine communities report mortality of fish and shellfish, as well as the destruction of important habitats for spawning and feeding, through, for example, increased turbidity caused by dredging, construction, drilling, and transport. Fishing with destructive fishing methods, including the use of undersized mesh in beach seines, traps, trawls, and gill nets, are also reported as a widespread problem, although no data are available. Several local communities in Rivers State have banned the use of seines with small mesh size. 2.38 Impact of Habitat Degradation. The damming of the Niger River has affected the hydrological cycles of the Niger Delta. This manipulation of the hydrological regime has greatly modified sediment transport and nutrient input into the sea, as well as increased salt water intrusion into the delta (see Flooding Section). As a result, fish and shellfish stocks of the coastal areas and particularly the freshwater swamp areas of the delta have been reduced. According to UNEP (1989) the reduction of the freshwater flow is accompanied by a reduction of the nutrient input to the coastal zone, which has led to a highly significant loss in local fish catches in the Niger Delta. 2.39 In the freshwater zone of the Niger Delta, the reduced floods, caused in part by upstream dams storing water during low rainfall years, have decreased the productivity of many ponds and lakes normally stocked by larvae of fish and shellfish during the flood seasons (Otobo 1995). When the floods fail, the next years catches are reduced. Fisherpersons praise