River Sezibwa oil spill serves locals poisoned fish

Apr 14, 2011

ON the night of December 12, 2010, residents of Namina village along Sezibwa River in Mukono district woke up to an unusual sight.

Gerald Tenywa

ON the night of December 12, 2010, residents of Namina village along Sezibwa River in Mukono district woke up to an unusual sight.

Fish that they had always toiled to catch, were floating on the river. Some of them dead others struggling for breath.

Like the Biblical manna from heaven, they swung into action, catching the fish in droves.

Their families ate to the fill and the surplus fish was sold to anxious traders. Some of the fish could have found its way to city markets.

The fish was a result of a Kampala- bound train belonging to Rift Valley Railways (RVR) that derailed in the area, spilling 40,000 litres of diesel into River Ssezibwa.

This, according to experts, is not only likely to pollute drinking water sources but also destroy millions of marine organisms.

Despite complaints to the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), the railway company did not take emergency measures to clean out the spilled oil.

Lawrence Mayega, the LC1 chairperson for Namina said when the train derailed; there was plenty of fish to take home.

But little known to the village folks is that the spillage was a curse because they were feasting on poisoned fish.

A man scooping muddy soil at the edge of the river is part of a group of villagers hired last week by Epsilon Uganda Ltd to avert a looming ecological crisis created by the oil spillage. But the scale of operation mounted by Epsilon is too small.

The intervention by Epsilon is four months late because oil spreads on water very fast.

Environment experts like Grace Birikadde of NEMA says the pollution of Ssezibwa means that millions of lives including aquatic organisms face the risk of being poisoned by the oil.

River Ssezibwa originates in Buikwe distict, crosses Mukono, Kayunga, Luweero and Nakasongola districts before joining Lake Kyoga.

“Oil spillage has far-reaching implications. It will not only affect aquatic life, but also poison fish and wild animals. The poison will come back to the human population when they eat either fish or the animals,” Birikadde says.

He adds that in the long run this could cause damage to animals including human immune systems.

According to Birikadde when the train derailed, the company disregarded the environmental laws by not bringing the matter to the attention of NEMA.

“We only got to know when residents raised an alarm. We sent a team to assess the damage and confirmed that a large part of the wetland was contaminated by the oil,” he adds.

Ayazika Waiswa who was then the acting executive director of NEMA wrote a letter dated February 7 to the managing director of RVR which read: “We have noted that since the incident, there has not been any action of clean-up, mitigation of impact and recovery of the affected ecological system. We are not certain whether these actions are deliberate or not.” By the time New Vision surveyed the swamp last week, there was a heavy smell of diesel in environment.

Birikadde says: “The oil has been washed away and the only step left is to sue Rift Valley Railways for inaction.”

Effects of oil spills
The LC1 chairperson for Binyira Village in Nakisungsa near Namina village, Absolom Luwaga, says River Ssezibwa is pushing water with fatty substances to their water sources.

He adds that they only have two wells, which supply some schools in the area with water.

“It is a shame that authorities have not come up to warn us about the implications. They are taking advantage of the situation because residents are not aware of their rights.”

Dr. David Ogaram, a toxicologist, points out that the population is unlikely to be immediately poisoned by diesel because they will sense the smell in water and avoid it.

“The impact on humans would be less but aquatic animals will suffer. The ecological damage will deplete organisms on which fish feeds and ultimately starve the human population of fish.”

He warns that oil spreads a layer on water and that it is the duty of the polluter in the Environment Act to clean up and pay for damages.

When New Vision called RVR on Thursday last week, the Procurement Manager, Joseph Adama, declined to comment.

Remedies
Dr Callist Tindimugaya, a commissioner in the directorate of Water Development says oil cannot be removed by setting the swamp ablaze.

“We were part of the team that did an assessment when the accident happened, but left NEMA to follow up this matter,” he adds.

Birikadde says it is possible to use chemicals that help to turn oil into solid substances or be taken off the surface. The second method is unleashing bacteria, which turns oil into harmless substances.

The third method uses a large rubber material known as a boom, which is used to encircle the polluted water before sucking it out.

The delayed response from RVR and NEMA to deal with the oil spill raises eyebrows.

Although, RVR is acting with impunity, Birikadde insists that NEMA has not forgotten its duty.

“There is a lot of unfinished business and the law spells out restoration and compensation when oil spillage occurs,” he says.

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