Oil extraction will ruin Uganda’s environment

The excitement over vast oil and gas discoveries in Uganda has just began; but it may not climax as yet, as serious environmental concerns arise — the same areas that have the minerals beneath, provides for over 70 per cent of the country’s conservation areas for wildlife and natural forest resources at the top.

Now the country is at a crossroads, to exploit all the oil wells at the detriment of the environment and perish or strike a balance between conservation and development.

This will entail leaving some of the protected areas off limits, or maintaining only protected areas viewed to be more important and let others be degazzeted.

Given the revenue projections accruing from oil, the government is likely to exploit all the wells.

“I suspect the government will insist on getting all the oil available. Can you imagine the day the donors will stop telling us do this and that?” said Senior Presidential Advisor on Media and Public Relations John Nagenda.

Tullow Oil, the company that is doing exploration of oil in the Albertine Rift, projects that the country can produce 2 billion barrels of oil a year, which in turn will raise $2 billion each year for the next 25 years.

Out of the 29 wells dug, 28 showed prospects of oil or gas or both. Many more wells are still under exploration.

“We will double the revenue; oil presents a significant effect on Uganda’s economy. Oil is an opportunity to develop tourism,” said Dr Brian Glover, General Manager Tullow Oil.

If produced well, it will place Uganda among the top 50 oil producing countries with an estimated 100,000 barrels a day.

There is a problem though; the oil and gas discoveries made so far are in the Albertine Rift, which is Africa’s most ecologically diverse and protected area.

Indeed, two of the promising wells are within the country’s largest conservation area, Murchison National Park.

Murchison National Park is home to the elephants, lions, giraffes, buffaloes and varieties of antelopes.

The Rubongo forest within the park is home to chimpanzees and other rainforest creatures.

The park is bisected by the Nile River that is host to hippos, crocodiles and a host of water birds including the rare shoebill.

Generally, the Albertine Rift is the home of 52 per cent of all African birds; Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, for instance, has hundreds of endemic bird species.