2021年南苏丹北部本蒂乌地区遭遇特大洪水，导致该地区约400口石油井中的159口被淹没，占当地石油基础设施的41%[1]。其中超过50口油井至今仍未露出水面[1]。这场由气候变化引发的灾难将石油污染物扩散至供水区域，严重危害了当地饮用水安全。
根据肯雅塔大学研究员Bul Duot Kuer的研究，被污染水体中的铅浓度达到18微克/升，接近世界卫生组织指导值的两倍[1]，烃类浓度则超过推荐限值5倍以上[1]。本蒂乌州医院工作人员注意到近年儿童畸形和先天异常有所增加[1]，当地居民出现了包括新生儿畸形和流产率增加等健康问题[1]。不过，目前尚未有确切的流行病学证据确认水污染与这些健康问题之间的因果关系[1]。
面对日益严重的局势，南苏丹第一副议长Ayen Mijok Kiir在2024年促请总统进一步调查污染与出生缺陷的关联[1]。石油是南苏丹的经济命脉，占国家收入的90%以上[1]。
Devastating floods triggered by climate change in 2021 have left South Sudan's water supply severely compromised, with lasting health consequences for residents in the northern Bentiu region. Of approximately 400 oil wells in the area, 159 were submerged by the floodwaters, representing roughly 41 percent of local petroleum infrastructure [1]. More than 50 of these wells remain underwater to this day [1].
The inundation has released substantial quantities of oil contaminants into water sources used by local populations. Water samples analyzed by researchers including Kenyatta University scholar Bul Duot Kuer revealed dangerous pollution levels: lead concentrations reached 18 micrograms per liter, nearly double the World Health Organization's guideline value [1], while hydrocarbon concentrations exceeded recommended limits by more than fivefold [1]. Medical staff at hospitals in Bentiu State have documented a noticeable increase in childhood malformations and congenital abnormalities in recent years [1], though epidemiological evidence establishing a definitive causal link between water contamination and these health outcomes remains absent [1]. In 2024, First Vice President Ayen Mijok Kiir called on the president to investigate further the connection between pollution and birth defects [1].
The contamination crisis occurs against the backdrop of South Sudan's economic dependence on oil, which accounts for over 90 percent of national revenue [1]. The 2021 flooding was preceded by warnings from Uganda in 2020 about rising Nile River water levels [1], signaling the region's vulnerability to climate-related hydrological shifts.