## 5 Conclusions  
Multiple studies have documented the damage to mangrove forests caused by petrochemical activities [44; 45; 46; 47]. Together, these studies indicate that crude oil spillages play a significant role in damaging fragile mangrove ecosystems, with associated debilitating impacts that persist for decades [48]. Traditional methods for tracking changes in mangrove biomass health typically require vegetative indices, most notably NDVI, to form the basis for these analyses [49; 50; 51]. However, such sensor modalities are compromised by the effects of cloud cover, which tends to dominate the meteorological conditions in the tropical/subtropical locations associated with mangrove forests. This limitation compromises the ability of such studies to apply a more precise and timely means of quantifying change. The growing availability of analysis-ready data products from active sensor missions, particularly the European Union's Copernicus Sentinel-1 mission, provides a weather-independent means of directly quantifying structural variations in mangroves every \(\sim\)6 days with a spatial resolution of \(\sim\)10 m. Several studies have integrated Sentinel-1 and other SAR mission data into programmes to successfully map mangrove forests [52; 53; 54], demonstrating the efficacy of this modality in such a general application. The novelty of our work lies in the development of a workflow that enables the study of the immediate mangrove environment proximal to petrochemical pipeline infrastructure over time, where we demonstrate \"our proof of concept\" in the River States region of the Niger Delta. Additionally, our workflow is weather-independent and can monitor large areas at a much lower cost, overcoming the limitations of traditional methods. Using our empirically derived Pipeline Impact Indicator' (PII), reported spillage events can be associated with proximal mangrove impact, and the rate of such mangrove damage can be quantified spatiotemporally. Our analysis has identified regions where targeted remediation efforts need to be actively implemented by responsible stakeholders and where intervention would be most effective in reducing the spread of oil pollution-induced mangrove loss. Furthermore, specific oil pipeline locations for which there have been no documented spillage events, yet which show all the signatures of such an event as having taken place, have been identified in our analysis. The lack of effective policy to address the under-reporting of oil spills and mitigate persisting pollution has resulted in severe environmental, socio-economic, and cultural consequences for the Niger Delta. This underscores the urgent need for a critical review of existing pollution mitigation and remediation policies in the region. An effective mitigation and remediation policy must include objective and efficient methods for monitoring spill sites, quantifying the magnitude of pollution events and assessing the impact on the surrounding ecosystems. This study proposes a workflow to lay the foundation for transparent, comprehensive, and efficient monitoring systems to assess the environmental impact of oil pollution on the mangrove ecosystem and other vital ecosystems. Such monitoring systems can support the development of effective mitigation and remediation policies to address the adverse impacts in the Niger Delta region and other affected regions worldwide. Our study further demonstrates the significant potential of incorporating high-resolution SAR Earth Observation data to enable independent monitoring of the operational integrity of petrochemical infrastructure located in ecologically sensitive environments, overcoming the established constraints of site accessibility and the cost associated with scaling evaluation temporally and spatially. Our novel methodology responds to the urgent need for scalable, continuous environmental monitoring to provide stakeholders with the data and evidence needed to prioritise intervention and inform policy.