Issued by: Petroleum Authority of Uganda
The Petroleum Authority of Uganda has noted several media reports regarding air pollution from the Tilenga oil project activities in Buliisa District. The reports claim that community members from five villages neighbouring the central processing facility in Buliisa District have petitioned the health ministry over air pollution generated by construction works for the Tilenga project.
The authority empathises with the impacted communities and confirms that there are indeed ongoing construction activities at the Tilenga Project Industrial Area in Buliisa. The area will host the central processing facility, construction support base, construction camps, and the drilling support base.
These works started in May 2021 and constitute part of the early activities to set up enabling infrastructure for the Tilenga project.
All Tilenga project activities, like other oil and gas activities in the Albertine Graben, are undertaken with consideration to the environment and host communities. This includes ensuring that all identified adverse impacts during project implementation are mitigated.
The current high dust levels are a result of very strong winds coupled with a prolonged dry spell within Buliisa district and the surrounding areas. This situation is not only affecting the Tilenga project industrial site area but also a wider landscape in Buliisa. To deal with this challenge, the frequency of water spraying has been increased to suppress the dust generated.
In addition, site activities that generate a lot of dust have been scaled down, and vehicle movements are being limited within and outside the operation areas. Therefore, the situation being witnessed is temporary and is worsened by natural factors. The above measures are being implemented to reduce the dust emissions, and it is expected that the situation shall normalise once the dry spell and strong winds ease.
The petroleum authority is committed to working with relevant stakeholders to safeguard the health of the communities and to ensure environmental and social protection during oil and gas activities.
