This week the Appeal Court of Port Harcourt dismissed the appeal filed by Shell, and upheld a Federal High Court ruling awarding N255 million in damages to the Ogoni community in Rivers State. The original decision found that the oil company was liable for a July 1994 oil spill from its Yorla Flow Station, which contaminated local waterways, land and fisheries, with severe impact on Ogoni livelihoods in the area. The Appeal Court reiterated the rights of the affected Ogoni to sue for damages, stating that federal laws regarding natural resource management “have not taken away their right to fish in rivers and they can claim for loss they suffered as a result of the spillage.”
