<b>Does gas Flaring affect Biochemical Parameters? Evidence from a Nigerian Oil-Bearing Community</b>

Upon the discovery of crude oil, Nigerian economy experienced an interesting leap. Agriculture suffered a setback because so much attention was moved to oil exploration since it accounted for over 70% of the country's foreign exchange earnings. However, oil exploitation precipitated the problem of gas flaring since Nigeria is endowed with more gas reserves than oil (Ashton-Jones, 1998). Gas flaring is the burning of natural gas that is associated with petroleum production while releasing hazardous compounds into the air. United States energy Information Administrative International energy statistics database (2023) reported that Nigeria flared about 5.318 billion cubic meters of natural gas in 2022 making Nigeria the 9th-highest natural gas flaring country in terms of annual natural gas flaring volume. Some of the hazardous compounds that gas flaring releases into the air are alkanes, alkenes, volatile organic compounds (VOC), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, naphthalene, styrene, acetylene, fluoranthene, anthracene, pyrene, xylene, ethylene, soot, greenhouse gases and carbon monoxide. Also, heavy metals are not excluded. I went on a tour to Ibeno, a gas faring community. As I discussed with the locals, they complained bitterly of experiencing so much hazards as a result of gas flaring. This led to the decision to embark on this journey in an attempt to scientifically validate or invalidate their claims. <br><br>Dr Ngozi Amanda Onwuka