The Forçados River (originally Forcados) is a channel in the

Niger Delta The Niger Delta is the delta of the Niger River sitting directly on the Gulf of Guinea on the Atlantic Ocean in Nigeria. It is located within nine coastal southern Nigerian states, which include: all six states from the South South geopolitic ...

, in southern

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

. It flows for approximately and meets the sea at the Bight of Benin in Delta State. It is an important channel for small ships. The Forçados River splits from the

Niger River The Niger River ( ; ) is the main river of West Africa, extending about . Its drainage basin is in area. Its source is in the Guinea Highlands in south-eastern Guinea near the Sierra Leone border. It runs in a crescent shape through ...

at Toru-Abubou near Agbere Town in Sagbama Local Government Area of

Bayelsa State Bayelsa is one of the states in the South-South region of Nigeria, located in the core of the Niger Delta region. Bayelsa State was created in 1996 and was carved out from Rivers State, making it one of the newest states in the federation. Yena ...

, the same point as the Nun River. People have been fishing on this river for years and then came to a dock on the

to sell/store and use for personal consumption. In the early years of the 20th century, Forçados was a destination port for steamers from

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

until the river silted up. A large hoard of bronze artefacts (1 armlet, 7 bells, 3 bracelets, 1 knife and 3

manillas Manillas are a form of commodity money, usually made of bronze or copper, which were used in West Africa.Chamberlain, C. C.(1963). The Teach Yourself ''Guide to Numismatics''. English Universities Press. p. 92. They were produced in large number ...

) from the Forçados River can be found in the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

's collection.

Pollution

The majority of the rivers in

region including Forçados River, experience and suffer pollution, the region had been an extraction for crude oil for more than 3 decades. Extraction of fossil fuels causes damages leading to excess air, water and soil pollution which are hazardous to the residents health. The location of Forcados River had been a passage for several oil companies in Niger Delta region for conveying crude oil which in return causes water pollution, killing and chasing the aquatic lives in the which the fishermen of the region survives on, and causes degradation of the environment

Flood

Flooding of the Forçados River causes degradation in the area it is located, forcing residents to evacaute while flooding continue to destroy their properties and belongings, it also led to the set back in the agricultural sector where farmers were forced to harvest their farm products prematurely.

References

Rivers of Nigeria Distributaries of the Niger River {{Nigeria-river-stub

Pollution

Flood

See also

References