Oilwatch International has called for the immediate cleanup of oil-polluted communities across Bayelsa State and the wider Niger Delta.

The demand was made during its 2026 stakeholders’ meeting titled “Reclaiming Ecological Integrity: A Frontline Community Partnership for Ecological Healing” held in Yenagoa.

Oilwatch Coordinator, Mr. Kentebe Ebiaridor, said decades of environmental pollution had stripped many Niger Delta residents of their dignity and livelihoods.

He said the initiative seeks to address the long-term impacts of pollution and restore affected communities’ connection with their environment.

Ebiaridor urged the Federal Government to move beyond rhetoric and take deliberate steps toward environmental restoration across the Niger Delta.

According to him, ongoing cleanup efforts in Ogoniland and Bayelsa should be expanded to cover all polluted communities in the region.

He also called for economic diversification, warning that dependence on oil is unsustainable as the world gradually transitions from fossil fuels.

Ebiaridor demanded the establishment of a $1 trillion remediation fund for the immediate cleanup and ecological recovery of the Niger Delta.

Chief Operating Officer of Environmental Conservation Agriculture and Rural Development (ECARD), Chief Alagoa Morris, described Bayelsa’s environmental report as a major milestone.

Morris, who also serves as Technical Adviser on Environment to the Bayelsa State Government, said the report provides a framework for wider environmental restoration efforts.

He expressed hope that the United Nations-backed cleanup model in Ogoniland would be extended to Bayelsa and other polluted Niger Delta communities.

Morris said civil society groups must sustain advocacy for environmental justice, public health, and livelihood restoration in affected communities.

He explained that operators in the extractive sector must be held accountable under the “polluter pays” principle and compelled to remediate damaged ecosystems.

A lecturer at Niger Delta University, Dr. Charles Oyibo, said environmental degradation continues to threaten livelihoods and expose communities to health risks.

Oyibo noted that oil exploration has historically prioritised economic gains over environmental protection, leaving communities to bear the consequences.

He called for increased public awareness and stronger accountability measures to ensure oil companies take responsibility for environmental damage.