Environmental and human rights advocates have urged the Federal Government to stop approving new oil wells in the Niger Delta, arguing that more than 70 years of crude oil exploration have brought environmental devastation, poverty and worsening climate impacts rather than meaningful development to host communities.

The call was made at the Niger Delta Climate Change Conference, where participants insisted that restoring polluted ecosystems and diversifying Nigeria’s economy should take precedence over expanding fossil fuel production.

Executive Director of the Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF), Dr Nnimmo Bassey, said decades of oil extraction had generated enormous revenue for Nigeria but left the Niger Delta with widespread environmental degradation.

He urged the government to halt new oil exploration, decommission ageing facilities and undertake a comprehensive cleanup of polluted sites.

Bassey argued that large-scale environmental remediation would not only restore damaged ecosystems but also create thousands of jobs through mangrove restoration, pollution cleanup and other ecological recovery programmes.

He also dismissed claims that reducing dependence on oil would collapse Nigeria’s economy, urging greater investment in alternative sectors.

Coordinator of Oilwatch International and Programme Manager of Environmental Rights Action in Rivers State, Kentebe Ebiaridor, said climate change was already destroying communities and worsening conflicts across the Niger Delta. He maintained that continued oil extraction was deepening the region’s environmental crisis.

Ebiaridor said: “Our message is simple: leave the oil in the soil.” He urged the government to reduce dependence on fossil fuels by investing in agriculture and other sustainable sectors, while challenging proponents of oil expansion to identify communities that had experienced development commensurate with decades of oil production.

Director of Amnesty International Nigeria, Isa Sanusi, described the situation in the Niger Delta as a “gross injustice,” alleging that recurring oil spills and gas leakages continued to threaten the health, livelihoods and environment of residents. He said the organisation investigates reported incidents before demanding accountability from those responsible.

Sanusi called on the Federal Government to prioritise the welfare of affected communities above oil revenues and ensure companies responsible for pollution are held accountable, stressing that environmental justice remained central to achieving lasting peace and sustainable development in the Niger Delta.