Petroleum Production Activities and Depletion of BiodiversityBiodiversity: A Case of Oil Spillage in the Niger Delta

In spite of the huge financial gains, there are challenges associated with exploration and production of oil. The fact is that, the oil producing industry within the Niger Delta has greatly contributed to the growth and development of Nigeria but unsustainable oil exploration and production activities has made the area one of the five most severely petroleum-impacted ecosystems in the world. Several strategies have been used to ameliorate the adverse effect of oil exploration in the area. However, the strategies are rather reactive than being proactive in practice and more scientifically inclined than ever. This chapter x-rays the positive and negative impacts of the oil industry activities in the Niger Delta. It suggests policy-enabling participatory process and the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) to rank main actions and their associated task for sustainable development in the area. Thus, the emphasis in Niger Delta is illustrative but the modeling approach presented is the major contribution of the chapter. The research is a rights-based tool for capacity building and it is designed to bridge a scientific gap between policy formulation and participatory process in biodiversity conservation in the face of environmental degradation.