By Witness Radio team.
More than 30 families in Kasinyi village, Nile parish, and Ngwendo sub-county in Buliisa district are facing displacement by floods caused by Total Energies operations’ exploration activities.
As a result, victim families have now petitioned Total Energies, urging the company to address severe flooding issues that they claim have been caused by its oil exploration activities. The flooding has so far destroyed homes and crops, leaving many families in terrible need of relief assistance.
Total Energies is constructing a 95-kilometer feeder oil pipeline from a planned Central Processing Facility (CPF) in Buliisa to the Kabaale Industrial Area in Hoima district. This pipeline will transport crude oil from the six Tilenga oil fields to the industrial area in the Hoima district.
The Tilenga project is part of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) project. Due to its social and ecological impacts, it has faced significant criticism from communities, civil society organizations, and environmental experts. Concerns about the displacement of local communities, potential threats to biodiversity, and the long-term effects on climate and ecosystems continue to be raised in the areas it is passing through.
In a petition signed by 32 heads of families, addressed to Mr. Philippe Groueix, Managing Director of Total Energies, and copied to the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) and the Petroleum Authority of Uganda (PAU), the families express deep concern over the flooding that has severely impacted their lives. They claim that the trench excavations to construct the Tilenga feeder pipeline are responsible for the flooding, which has destroyed many homes and crops.
“The flooding, which the pipeline development in swampy lands has caused, and the lack of alternative drainage channels, has affected our gardens and homes. Our properties have been destroyed, yet no one cares about us, not even the project implementers,” said Mr. Tholith Emmanuel, one of the petitioners, during an interview with Witness Radio.
“We depend on farming to make a living, but the floods have caused a complete loss of crops,” he added.
Residents allege that the flooding began after oil exploration and construction activities began. “We have lived here for many years, and this was never a problem before the oil development. After their work started, we experienced heavy flooding, which means there was no proper planning for our area’s impact, ” Emmanuel added.
Another resident, Mr. Katehe Selina, expressed frustration over losing his maize and cassava due to the floods. He urged Total Energies to address the situation promptly to prevent further destruction. “I have lost my crops, and my livelihood depends on farming. If this continues, my community and I cannot meet basic household needs, including paying school fees. The challenge could lead to higher school dropout rates, teenage pregnancies, domestic violence, and other social problems,” he warned.
In their petition, the residents are calling out Total Energies to take immediate action to fairly and adequately compensate the families who have lost property due to the floods be fairly and adequately compensated without delay and to provide proper drainage solutions to prevent further water stagnation and flooding in their village.
By press time, Total Energies had not responded to Witness Radio’s request for confirmation of the petition’s receipt nor provided any indication of how it plans to address the community’s concerns.
