AN EXAMINATION OF THE LEGAL FRAMEWORK FOR ENFORCING CORPORATE ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY OF OIL COMPANIES ON HOST COMMUNITIES IN NIGERIA

Abstract

The recognition that environmental issues can contribute to violent conflict underscores their importance as avenues of cooperation. This paper examines the legal framework for enforcing the corporate environmental responsibility of oil Companies in order to determine whether the laws are effective enough to solve developmental challenges of the petroleum host communities in Nigeria. The Nigerian petroleum laws contain provisions that prohibit oil companies from polluting the environment in the course of their operations. The Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021 requires the oil company to set up a trust fund on behalf of the host communities and also provides a percentage to be invested to meet the needs of the host communities. However, there is no adequate involvement of agencies in carrying out investigation and projects due to a lack of adequate funding. The Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, like the National Oil Spill Detection and Response (Establishment) Act (NOSDRA), has placed so much trust in the polluter (Oil Company). Despite stringent laws, it is not always easy on the part of host communities to contest the statutory provisions that impose corporate environmental responsibility on oil companies for violation of such CER to aggrieved community litigants. This paper therefore concluded that there is a need to have a proper funding mechanism such as Green Financing specifically stated in the laws to achieve environmental and economic benefits simultaneously.