Research output per year
Research output per year
Accepting PhD Students
PhD projects
1. A NEW APPROACH TO MODELLING OIL SPILL IN THE FLUVIAL TO MARINE TRANSITION ZONES 2. APPLICATION OF THE STRUCTURAL EQUATION MODELLING APPROACH TO ASCERTAIN THE TRUE COSTS OF EIA AND THE DETERMINANTS OF IMPACT PREDICTION QUALITY
Willing to speak to media
Research activity per year
Dr Babatunde Anifowose CEnv., MSPE, MEI, SFHEA holds a Diploma in Data Processing (Computer Science), BSc and MSc degrees from the University of Lagos, Akoka-Nigeria and a PhD in Geography and Environmental Science from the University of Birmingham UK (funded by the Nigerian Government through the Petroleum Technology Development Fund: 2007-2010). Dr Anifowose’s research interest focuses primarily on the assessment and mitigation of environmental impacts across complex projects (e.g. the oil and gas value chain) including the social-environmental science nexus and specifically oil spill trajectory simulation/modelling on water particularly in an EIA context; and how these influence livelihoods and environmental sustainability. This complex issue requires a systematic understanding of hydrological and hydraulic parameters, inter alia, for input characterisation into models of specific river channel or coastal environment of interest to support optimal decision-making in the protection of environmental receptors and ecosystem services. Dr Anifowose’s expertise in this area has evolved over the years through research, external consulting and tailored residential training e.g. (a) Science of Oil Spills held at the NOAA campus in Seattle, Washington USA; and (b) Meshing and Hydrodynamic Modelling held at HR Wallingford, Oxford, UK. Much earlier in his career, Babatunde had training in the ‘Concepts of Oil Spill Fate and Transport Forecasting’ provided by US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and ‘Slow Water and Fast Water Booming Techniques’ provided by the US Environmental Protection Agency both funded by the American Petroleum Institute.
Dr Anifowose has expert knowledge and experience in environmental sustainability and project performance evaluation through EIA as a planning tool for sustainable development and management of environmental problems. He is also interested in climate change issues (e.g. methane emissions from oil and gas facilities) and seasonal variation in river flow, hydraulic geometry principle, oil and gas transportation, GIS and environmental remote sensing. Given his computing/data processing background, Babatunde is keenly interested in the evolving research sub-discipline that deals with the applicability of digital technologies (e.g. Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning etc.) in EIA processes. Dr Anifowose is an invited peer-reviewer for a number of Elsevier Journals. He has been privileged to advise on an externally-funded project on oil spills and hydro-environmental implications; and, also served as specialist adviser to the CSC on the quality of scholarship applicants and their suitability for UK post-doctoral fellowships in the field of Environmental Science relating to oil pollution. He is a professional member of the British Hydrological Society (with the Institution of Civil Engineers), the Society of Petroleum Engineers (HSSE and Sustainable Development Technical Discipline), the Energy Institute, and has been a friend of the Transportation Research Board (TRB) of the US National Academies of Science’s committee on Transportation of Hazardous Materials – AT040 since 2008. Dr Anifowose is a Senior Fellow of the UK Higher Education Academy and a member of the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council’s (EPSRC) Associate Peer Review College. He is on the Board of Directors of Society of Petroleum Engineers’ Sustainable Development Technical Section and serves as its Administrative Chair.
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of complex projects (e.g. oil and gas) incl. the application of digital technologies (Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning etc.); Project Performance Evaluation; Social-Environmental Science nexus of development project impacts in host communities; Oil spill modelling; Flow description for oil spill trajectory simulation; Hydraulic Geometry Principle; Oil and Gas Transportation; Oil and Gas EIA/EIS Quality; Environmental GIS and Remote Sensing; Projects, Facilities and Construction phase interaction with Environmental receptors
My research work experience dates back more than 20 years ago (year 2000-2001) on a World Bank commissioned project on Rural Travels and Rural Transport Infrastructure in the riverine areas of selected oil producing communities in Nigeria’s Niger- Delta. This project did inspire my research vision through the years and has further provoked the quest for greater understanding of why, despite the implementation of environmental assessment protocols, environmental problems persist. This is crucial since the on-boarding of a 100% renewable energy to service key sectors of the global economy (i.e. power generation, transport, building & industry) is hindered by the current lack of mature technologies to cost-effectively replace those conventional ones built more than 200 years ago. Therefore, to support the energy transition, oil and gas exploitation has to proceed with sustainable development at the core of the business. My vision is to ensure that sustainability is engrained into project planning and execution through the EIA protocol linked to EMP and EMS (e.g. ISO 14001) by addressing current knowledge gaps. For example, research evidence supported by existing literature shows that very little is known about key environmental receptors in locations where oil and gas activities currently take place. My research hopes to further advance our knowledge of the process regimes of key hydro-environmental parameters (e.g. Q, m3 s-1; H, m; V, m s-1; X-Sectional Area, m; SSC, mg L-1; wind, m s-1; salinity & temp.) surrounding major oil and gas infrastructure and their location-specific influence on oil behaviour which should ideally inform oil spill response and impact mitigation. My experience and literature evidence show that real-time response to oil pollution has been ineffective partly due to limited understanding of these parameters, especially in places where methodical data collection is erratic or at times non-existent.
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Environmental Science, Doctorate, University of Birmingham
11 Sep 2007 → 22 Dec 2010
Award Date: 19 Jul 2011
Geography (Transport & Remote Sensing), MSc, University of Lagos
1 Dec 2005 → 31 Dec 2006
Award Date: 1 Apr 2007
Chair, Engineering Professionalism Committee, Society of Petroleum Engineering
23 Sep 2021 → 22 Sep 2022
EPSRC Associate Peer Review College Member, Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
15 Jan 2020 → …
Member, Education and Accreditation Committee, Society of Petroleum Engineering
18 Jun 2019 → …
Member, Training and Professional Development Committee , International Association For Impact Assessment
25 Mar 2018 → …
Chair (Administrative), Sustainable Development Technical Section, Society of Petroleum Engineering
1 Oct 2017 → …
External Examiner, International College of Business and Technology
9 Nov 2016 → 8 Nov 2020
External Examiner, Cardiff Metropolitan University
1 Sep 2016 → 31 Aug 2020
Research output: Contribution to journal › Conference article
Research output: Contribution to journal › Conference article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter
Babatunde Anifowose (Session Chair)
Activity: Participating in or organising an event › Participation in workshop, seminar, course
Babatunde Anifowose (Examiner)
Activity: Examination
Babatunde Anifowose (Examiner)
Activity: Examination
Anifowose, Babatunde (Recipient), 31 May 2020
Prize: National/international honour
8/01/18 → 19/01/18
4 Media contributions
Press/Media: Expert Comment