Details
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Qualification | Ph.D. |
| Awarding Institution | |
| Supervised by |
|
| Date of Award | 15 Jul 2016 |
| Publication status | Published - 2016 |
Abstract
regional landscapes? (2) At the community level, how would this spatial
transformation affect livelihoods and address the need for spatial infrastructure?
The development of Nigeria’s oil sands resource is expected to trigger a
systematic reshaping of spatial patterns across a 120 kilometer belt. In southern
Ondo State, where the richest oil sands deposits are found, communities are
eager to unlock the development they believe oil sands will bring. This
dissertation addresses a present lack of understanding regarding how the industry could fundamentally spatially restructure the region and, most importantly, how this restructuring would affect residents.
Drawing on the results of fieldwork in southern Ondo State and two case studies,
the dissertation constructs an ‘analytical lens’ through which the research
questions are investigated. This analysis culminates in two exploratory scenarios
for future oil sands development. The first component of the analytical lens is
the fieldwork in four communities in Ondo State, which included 8 focus groups,
8 participatory mapping workshops, 80 interviews with residents, and 20 expert
interviews. Based on the data collected during fieldwork, the dissertation
determines that the most critical needs of study communities are better
livelihoods, access to electricity, and improved transportation infrastructure. The
second and third components of the analytical lens consist of two comparative
case studies on Nigeria’s conventional oil industry and Canada’s oil sands
industry. The results of the first case study, ‘Nigeria’s Conventional Oil Industry’,
suggest that Nigeria’s poor track record of resource governance in the oil
industry is likely to repeat in the oil sands belt, leading to widespread
environmental degradation and poor development outcomes. The results of the
second case study, ‘Canada’s Oil Sands Industry’, suggest that the in-situ oil sands industry is likely to lead to significant spatial transformation of Nigeria’s oil sands belt and serious social and environmental impacts.
The dissertation’s fieldwork and scenarios reveal that although community needs might be partially met in the beginning phases of oil sands development, it is unlikely that such benefits will be sustained throughout production and its
aftermath. In addition, the negative environmental impacts of oil sands
development are likely to increase over time. These two findings suggest that oil
sands development may not be able to meet community expectations for oil
sands development, particularly in the long term. The dissertation also argues
that two groups of residents, making up the majority of residents in the study
area, are likely to do particularly poorly during oil sands development: first,
residents without formal land titles and, second, residents employed in land-
based livelihoods. Should oil sands production go ahead despite the potential
negative impacts, employing a scenario approach such as that developed in this
dissertation can likely help policy makers anticipate critical junctures where
planning interventions may be able to lessen the negative impacts of oil sands
development.
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2016. 340 p.
Research output: Thesis › Doctoral thesis
}
TY - BOOK
T1 - Anticipating the spatial impacts of oil sands production on livelihoods and infrastructure in Ondo State, Nigeria.
AU - Milos, Christina
PY - 2016
Y1 - 2016
N2 - The dissertation employs a scenario-based approach to answer two questions: (1) How might Nigeria’s future in-situ oil sands production spatially transformregional landscapes? (2) At the community level, how would this spatialtransformation affect livelihoods and address the need for spatial infrastructure?The development of Nigeria’s oil sands resource is expected to trigger asystematic reshaping of spatial patterns across a 120 kilometer belt. In southernOndo State, where the richest oil sands deposits are found, communities areeager to unlock the development they believe oil sands will bring. Thisdissertation addresses a present lack of understanding regarding how the industry could fundamentally spatially restructure the region and, most importantly, how this restructuring would affect residents.Drawing on the results of fieldwork in southern Ondo State and two case studies,the dissertation constructs an ‘analytical lens’ through which the researchquestions are investigated. This analysis culminates in two exploratory scenariosfor future oil sands development. The first component of the analytical lens isthe fieldwork in four communities in Ondo State, which included 8 focus groups,8 participatory mapping workshops, 80 interviews with residents, and 20 expertinterviews. Based on the data collected during fieldwork, the dissertationdetermines that the most critical needs of study communities are betterlivelihoods, access to electricity, and improved transportation infrastructure. Thesecond and third components of the analytical lens consist of two comparativecase studies on Nigeria’s conventional oil industry and Canada’s oil sandsindustry. The results of the first case study, ‘Nigeria’s Conventional Oil Industry’,suggest that Nigeria’s poor track record of resource governance in the oilindustry is likely to repeat in the oil sands belt, leading to widespreadenvironmental degradation and poor development outcomes. The results of thesecond case study, ‘Canada’s Oil Sands Industry’, suggest that the in-situ oil sands industry is likely to lead to significant spatial transformation of Nigeria’s oil sands belt and serious social and environmental impacts.The dissertation’s fieldwork and scenarios reveal that although community needs might be partially met in the beginning phases of oil sands development, it is unlikely that such benefits will be sustained throughout production and itsaftermath. In addition, the negative environmental impacts of oil sandsdevelopment are likely to increase over time. These two findings suggest that oilsands development may not be able to meet community expectations for oilsands development, particularly in the long term. The dissertation also arguesthat two groups of residents, making up the majority of residents in the studyarea, are likely to do particularly poorly during oil sands development: first,residents without formal land titles and, second, residents employed in land-based livelihoods. Should oil sands production go ahead despite the potentialnegative impacts, employing a scenario approach such as that developed in thisdissertation can likely help policy makers anticipate critical junctures whereplanning interventions may be able to lessen the negative impacts of oil sandsdevelopment.
AB - The dissertation employs a scenario-based approach to answer two questions: (1) How might Nigeria’s future in-situ oil sands production spatially transformregional landscapes? (2) At the community level, how would this spatialtransformation affect livelihoods and address the need for spatial infrastructure?The development of Nigeria’s oil sands resource is expected to trigger asystematic reshaping of spatial patterns across a 120 kilometer belt. In southernOndo State, where the richest oil sands deposits are found, communities areeager to unlock the development they believe oil sands will bring. Thisdissertation addresses a present lack of understanding regarding how the industry could fundamentally spatially restructure the region and, most importantly, how this restructuring would affect residents.Drawing on the results of fieldwork in southern Ondo State and two case studies,the dissertation constructs an ‘analytical lens’ through which the researchquestions are investigated. This analysis culminates in two exploratory scenariosfor future oil sands development. The first component of the analytical lens isthe fieldwork in four communities in Ondo State, which included 8 focus groups,8 participatory mapping workshops, 80 interviews with residents, and 20 expertinterviews. Based on the data collected during fieldwork, the dissertationdetermines that the most critical needs of study communities are betterlivelihoods, access to electricity, and improved transportation infrastructure. Thesecond and third components of the analytical lens consist of two comparativecase studies on Nigeria’s conventional oil industry and Canada’s oil sandsindustry. The results of the first case study, ‘Nigeria’s Conventional Oil Industry’,suggest that Nigeria’s poor track record of resource governance in the oilindustry is likely to repeat in the oil sands belt, leading to widespreadenvironmental degradation and poor development outcomes. The results of thesecond case study, ‘Canada’s Oil Sands Industry’, suggest that the in-situ oil sands industry is likely to lead to significant spatial transformation of Nigeria’s oil sands belt and serious social and environmental impacts.The dissertation’s fieldwork and scenarios reveal that although community needs might be partially met in the beginning phases of oil sands development, it is unlikely that such benefits will be sustained throughout production and itsaftermath. In addition, the negative environmental impacts of oil sandsdevelopment are likely to increase over time. These two findings suggest that oilsands development may not be able to meet community expectations for oilsands development, particularly in the long term. The dissertation also arguesthat two groups of residents, making up the majority of residents in the studyarea, are likely to do particularly poorly during oil sands development: first,residents without formal land titles and, second, residents employed in land-based livelihoods. Should oil sands production go ahead despite the potentialnegative impacts, employing a scenario approach such as that developed in thisdissertation can likely help policy makers anticipate critical junctures whereplanning interventions may be able to lessen the negative impacts of oil sandsdevelopment.
U2 - 10.15488/8744
DO - 10.15488/8744
M3 - Doctoral thesis
ER -