OLSSON A. 1, COWING M. 1, KIM J. 1, KORENJAK M. 1, MCCORMACK V. 1, ZABBEY N. 2, AGUIYI D. 2, KPOBARI N. 2, HART J. 3, FAKAE B. 4, ROBERT F. 4, KAKULU I. 4, OREH A. 5, SCHUZ J. 1
1 Environment and Lifestyle Epidemiology Branch (IARC/WHO), Lyon , France; 2 Centre of Excellence for Environmental Restoration, Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP), Port Harcourt, Nigeria; 3 Medical and Dental council of Nigeria, Port Harcourt, Nigeria; 4 Rivers State University, Port Harcourt, Nigeria; 5 Rivers State Ministry of Health, Port Harcourt, Nigeria
Background: Ogoniland in the Niger Delta has been the site of oil industry operations since the late 1950s resulting in severe hydrocarbon pollution of the environment, which was comprehensively assessed by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). In their 2011 report ‘Environmental Assessment of Ogoniland’, the UNEP reported high levels of air, water, and soil contamination and recommended to the government to undertake environmental remediation and to assess human health consequences. UNEP contacted IARC/ENV in 2019 and following years of discussions with Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Environment and Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP), "the Human Biomonitoring Health Study in Ogoniland" was launched in 2025.
Objectives:
Quantify exposure to hydrocarbons and heavy metals and assess health status among residents in Ogoniland
Identify populations at highest risk and in need of targeted public health interventions
Build and strengthen local research capacity for continued environmental health monitoring
Methods: In collaboration with HYPREP and the Rivers State University (RSU) in Port Harcourt, IARC is conducting a single cross-sectional study over 3 years, including the general population (n=3,000-4,000) in Ogoniland and neighbouring communities, i.e. four Local Governmental Areas (LGA) in Ogoniland plus Port Harcourt and the neighbouring community of Ataba, south of Ogoniland. Specific occupational groups including fisherfolk, remediation workers, ex-artisanal crude oil refiners and sand-miners are of interest because of their assumed higher exposure to hydrocarbons compared to the general population. The environmental measurements from the UNEP study (2007-2010) and subsequently from HYPREP form the basis of the selection of communities for this study. Men, women, and children between 3 and 17 years old are eligible, when the adults (always accompanying their child) have resided ≥5 years in their communities.
Results: The data collection is preceded by ethical approvals, informed consent for adults, parental consent for children, plus child assent from 11 years of age. To optimise the information from each community we recruit study participants according to a pre-defined age and sex distribution scheme. The interviews include information about the study participants’ housing and family conditions, livelihood, food habits, substance use, and perceived health. We also collect anthropometric measurements, spirometry results, as well as samples of blood (15ml, only from adults) and urine (100ml). Some of the blood analyses, including targeted proteomics and DNA damage measurements, and the quantification of metabolites from benzene, toluene, xylene, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (n=23) and heavy metals (n=8) in urine require the samples to be frozen within hours of collection, which led to the decision to transport study participants (n=50, 3/week) to the RSU Medical Centre for sampling.
Conclusions: The study will provide the first population-level evidence of internal exposure and early biological effects in Ogoniland, directly informing remediation priorities, health surveillance, and risk communication strategies in the Niger Delta. If the study protocol is validated for the conduct of this study, it can be re-utilised and adapted to other areas with similar challenges, particularly within the developing world.