Northland Deep Sea Oil Factsheet_dec2014

7/18/2019 Northland Deep Sea Oil Factsheet_dec2014

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/northland-deep-sea-oil-factsheetdec2014 1/4





What’s the Government up to?

Kaitaia

Auckland

Dargaville

0 100km

Big changes have been made to laws to make oil exploration and

drilling as easy as possible for multinational oil companies, including

dropping the cost of oil exploration permits6.

Simon Bridges, the Minister for Energy and Resources, has beengoing around the world7 telling corporations that we have low

royalties and taxes, free seabed geology information to give them

and that the Government will actively support these companies.

In April 2014, an exploration permit covering a massive area,

larger than the whole North Island, called the Caledonia Basin was

approved for Anadarko (25%), a Chinese Government oil company,

(CNOOC International Limited: 37.5%), and Shell (Energy Holdings

Offshore Limited: 37.5%). Around a quarter of the seismic testing

for this permit has already been carried out during 2014.

Anadarko was found “jointly and severally liable” with BP for the

Gulf of Mexico oil spill. It took over 6000 ships to clean up thatoil spill. Maritime New Zealand has three small boats for its oil

response fleet.

In October 2014, TGS-Nopec Geophysical Company ASA was

given a prospecting permit also covering a seabed area bigger

than the North Island off Northland8.

Statoil’s exploration permit was also extended in December 2014

by 1670 km3 of seabed offshore from Hokianga to Dargaville.

SEISMIC TESTING

This summer Statoil begin their onslaught of seismic ocean blasting - the

first step towards ultra deep sea oil drilling - off Northland. The air blasts are

so loud they create an equivalent noise impact as blasting dynamite in rock

underwater. And this will happen every minute for months on end.

Concerned scientists say the seismic air gun explosions can be heard at least

80 km away underwater. The blasts can damage hearing, which whales rely

on to navigate, and they can be killed if they’re very close to the explosions.

Seismic surveys have been strongly related to whale, dolphin and giant squidstrandings and their deaths at sea3. Reduction in commercial fish catch4 and

other problems have also been highlighted across the world5.

Caledonia Basin: Anadarko /Shell / ChineseGovernment oilcompany permit

Statoilpermit

TGS - Nopec Permit

Current Northland Oil Permits



Keep the seas of Aotearoa oil free!

For more information email: [email protected]

The Norwegian Government set up an oil company in the 1970s

to find oil beneath the seas around Norway. Statoil began drilling

for oil close to shore and moved into deeper and deeper waters as

oil ran out. Now Statoil operates in 36 countries. If the corporation

found oil here, Statoil would take the vast majority of profits and we

are expected to live with 100% of the risk.

Statoil likes to think of itself as ‘responsible’ and ‘clean’ but

the company is involved in the controversial new drilling for

oil in the Arctic and is only interested in maximising profits.

This year the international price of oil has crashed and Statoil has

made the biggest loss in the company’s history. So now is the best

time for our opposition to have an impact.

Who is Statoil?

This summer we are stepping up the

opposition to deep sea oil drilling in theNorth and a number of regional communitymobilisation groups have formed along thewestern coastline of Taitokerau.

The past few years has seen the Government offer the seabed off the west coast of

Northland to international companies to come and look for oil. Every year more seabed

around country is being opened for oil exploration. Government announcements in

December 2014 cover any new Block Offer permits off western Northland.

You can make contact with them by going to the ‘Protect Te Reinga’ group

on facebook or emailing Mike Smith at: [email protected]

SOURCES

(1) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Diagram_of_a_marine_seismic_survey.png

(2) http://www.nzherald.co.nz/northern-advocate/business/news/article.cfm?c_

id=1503446&objectid=11232100

(3) http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1407/S00224/experts-appalled-at-oil-survey-

threat-to-maui-dolphin.htm

(4) http://www.nrdc.org/oceans/files/seismic.pdf

(5) Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EbyZwXbJ3Q#t=2961 Study : http://

scitation.aip.org/content/asa/journal/jasa/113/1/10.1121/1.1527962

(6) http://www.nzpam.govt.nz/cms/about-nzpam/news/2014/partial-fees-changes-

approved

(7) http://www.simonbridges.co.nz/index.php?/archives/490-Energy-Minister-to-visit-

Norway,-US-and-Canada.html

(8) http://data.nzpam.govt.nz/PermitWebMaps/Home/StaticMap?permit=56377

What you can do immediately is:

• Make contact with the regional network (see email address above)

• Organise a public meeting in your area and invite us to present the case

against deep sea oil drilling

• Adopt a formal position against the drilling in regard to any organisation you

belong to and communicate this to the Government

• Produce signs and nail them to your fence, house, Marae, letterbox, gate etc

• Declare your area “Deep Sea Oil Drilling Free”

• Tune into the morning show on Radio Te Hiku o Te Ika for regular updates

on the issue

• Participate in the programme of events that will be coming this summer• Check out the Greenpeace website for other information and events

The objective of these groups is to:

1) Raise awareness about the issues

2) Develop a network of community

mobilisation groups across the region

3) Bring pressure to bear on the government

and Statoil by direct action

4) Establish this region’s profile as being

hostile to deep sea oil drilling

Documents

Northland Deep Sea Oil Factsheet_dec2014