Environmentalists, civil society appeal govt's move to allow Shell’s NC oil & gas drilling project
Environmentalists, Green Connection and Natural Justice, along with numerous West Coast communities believe the approval is not only reckless, but potentially unlawful.
A Shell petrol station. Picture: Brandon Bell / Getty Images via AFP
CAPE TOWN - Civil society organisations and coastal communities have launched a formal appeal against the government’s controversial decision to green-light Shell’s Northern Cape ultra deep oil and gas drilling project.
The Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources granted authorisation of the project a month ago.
Environmentalists, Green Connection and Natural Justice, along with numerous West Coast communities believe the approval is not only reckless, but potentially unlawful.
The legal advisor for the Green Connection , Shahil Singh, said the formal appeal seeks to stop Shell from drilling for oil in ultra-deep waters off the West Coast.
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Singh said if the project were to go ahead, it would be the deepest oil well in South Africa.
However, Shell's own environmental report appears to be riddled with serious flaws.
"The oil spill modelling is seriously optimistic. It relies on emergency equipment that may not work at those depths. It ignores worst-case scenarios, and it underplays the risks to small-scale fishers and our marine life," explained Singh.
The public was also not given a proper chance to have its say on shell’s oil spill response plans, added Singh.
Both Shell and the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources have not yet provided a response to the appeal.