NUPRC, OGUN LAUNCH JOINT PROBE INTO IJEBU GAS EMISSIONS

The Federal Government, through the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, has deployed a specialised technical ad-hoc committee to Ogun State to investigate and mitigate recurring subsurface gas seepages that have impacted secondary schools and host communities across the Ijebu axis and neighbouring regions.

The FG Ogun gas leaks probe intervention follows reports of localised gas emissions causing oxygen depletion and public health concerns, with over 100 students recently hospitalised, ValidViewNetwork reports .

THE INVESTIGATION

During a joint briefing and site assessment kickoff in Ijebu on Saturday, officials confirmed that preliminary findings point to a natural, subsurface geological phenomenon rather than pipeline leaks.

The team lead of the Federal Government Ad-hoc Committee, Prosper Okonedo, an Assistant Director at the NUPRC, said the commission had constituted the committee following an initial assessment conducted by the Ogun State Government.

“About two weeks ago, the Commission Chief Executive of NUPRC, Mrs. Oritsemeyawa Eyesan, advised that we set up an ad-hoc committee from the Lagos regional office to come to the state because the state government had conducted an initial assessment and submitted their report,” Okonedo said .

He disclosed that the Commission had also been investigating similar incidents in other parts of the country, including communities in Rivers and Delta states.

“Presently, we have a study group known as the ‘Epe Study Group.’ They are looking into similar issues in a village community in Rivers State, and there is one right now in Delta State where we have established that gas seepage is emanating from the subsurface. However, for this state, we cannot really say what it is right now. That is why we are here,” he said .

THE STATE’S POSITION

The Ogun State Commissioner for Environment, Ola Oresanya, described the recurring emissions as an emerging regional environmental challenge requiring national expertise.

“We have similar problems going on right now in Rivers, Delta, Osun, and here in Ogun State. Coincidentally for us in Ogun State, this is happening around schools. But we need to establish that what is happening around the region is similar to what we are witnessing here—it is not just a local problem,” Oresanya said.

He ruled out any immediate plans to relocate residents, pointing to ongoing global benchmarking and public health management protocols.

“There is no gas pipeline at Owode in Ikenne, and there is no gas pipeline around Ijebu-Omu where these things are happening. It is coming from the upper crust. It is a natural occurrence, and what triggers it will be established,” he stated .

THE GEOLOGICAL FINDINGS

Professor Philip Ikhiane, a Professor of Sedimentary Petroleum Geochemistry at Olabisi Onabanjo University and Lead of the Ogun State Technical Investigating Team, said preliminary geological work and remote sensing operations had discovered subsurface lineaments.

“Through preliminary geological work and remote sensing operations, we discovered subsurface lineaments, which might be in the form of faults, fractures, joints underneath the ground,” he said.

The findings suggest that the gas, previously identified as methane, is escaping through these underground structures.

THE HUMAN COST

For the fourth time this year, over 100 students across secondary schools in Ijebu Ode, Ago Iwoye and Ijebu Igbo were recently hospitalised after inhaling the offensive gaseous substance.

The affected schools include Ijebu Igbo Girls Grammar School, Anglican Girls Grammar School in Ijebu Ode, and Itamerin Comprehensive High School in Ago Iwoye.

A teacher in one of the affected schools described the panic: “The incident happened at about 10 am in the morning. The students and the staff started inhaling this gas and began to have difficulty in breathing and were fainting after which they were rushed to the hospitals”.

WHY IT MATTERS

The gas leaks are no longer a mystery. They are a geological reality.

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Methane is escaping from the earth’s crust through fault lines, and it is affecting schools, communities, and the health of young Nigerians.

The Federal Government’s intervention is a recognition that this is not a problem Ogun State can solve alone.

But for the parents whose children have been hospitalised four times in six months, the investigation is cold comfort. They want answers. They want a solution. And they want to know that their children are safe when they go to school.

The committee has arrived. The assessment has begun. The wait continues. ValidViewNetwork reports.