‘No drilling’ say determined South Coasters

South Coasters gathered in their numbers at Venture Inn, Umtentweni last Wednesday to say ‘no’ to oil and gas drilling off the coastline.

ALSO READ : Possible offshore drilling a concern

Sasol Africa Ltd and Eni, an Italian oil and gas corporation, are collaborating in a project to explore for oil and gas along the KwaZulu-Natal coast, hoping to locate massive oil and gas reserves under the seabed at depths of between 3 800m and 4 800m.

This project, which is one of many under the auspices of Operation Phakisa, aims to tap into the economic potential of South Africa’s Exclusive Economic Zone (shoreline to continental shelf and beyond).

One of the many objectives of Operation Phakisa is to locate and drill a target of 30 exploration wells before 2024.

But to get the go-ahead the project requires Environmental Authorisation (EA) from the National Department of Mineral Resources through the Petroleum Agency South Africa (PASA).

Project context

Eni is considering drilling one well in late 2019/early 2020. One well will be completed in two months and the success of the first well will determine whether or not subsequent wells are to be drilled.

Public meeting

Everyone was invited to attend an open house meeting where the findings of the draft Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) were communicated. The public had the opportunity to interact with Sasol’s consultants, Environmental Resources Management (ERM) and the project team and put forward their questions.

No to drilling

Desmond D’Sa, environmental activist, South Durban Community Environmental Alliance, said the report was misleading. “There are numerous concerns that we have raised regarding the oil and gas exploration activities proposed for our coast and find many glaring discrepancies throughout all the processes thus far concerning these activities.

“If the drilling were allowed to go ahead it would destroy a large area of our beautiful coastline. Why aren’t the experts here to explain what the risks are. We did explain to them that this project cannot go ahead. I have travelled to many countries where there were drilling operations and it is a disaster waiting to happen.”

Marine life

In KwaZulu-Natal, it is recognised that healthy marine ecosystems are critically important to marine life and to the coastal communities whose economies rely on tourism, fishing and recreational activities. Thus opening offshore areas to drilling risks permanent damage to KwaZulu-Natal’s coastline and the marine environment.

Expanded or routine offshore drilling poses the risk of oil spills ruining the beaches from Richards Bay to Port Shepstone, bringing harm to those who live, work and vacation along the coasts.

“The developer must appoint a consultant as per the EIA regulations to ensure that the public meetings they intend holding are independent and unbiased. Terms of reference of the independent consultant must be circulated to all stakeholders including interested and affected parties,” said Mr D’Sa.

Public comments

Others at the meeting pointed out that South African oceans are home to a variety of endangered species which run the risk of extinction if exposed to offshore drilling. “If there are oil spills this could affect plankton, which plays a pivotal role in the ocean’s ecosystem, and could affect the sardine run which is a huge tourism play for the coastline. Will South Africans be benefiting from these projects?” they asked.

Concerned locals also mentioned that opening up new offshore areas to drilling risks permanent damage to our oceans and beaches without reducing our dependence on oil.

“Our coast could be subject to huge oil spills equivalent to the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, with calamitous long-term costs for the tourism and fishing industries. If these plans were to go ahead, the climate crisis, which is not factored in and taken seriously, would be intensified and South Africa’s own carbon-budget strategy of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 34 percent in 2020 would not be achieved. The climate crisis is in fact a reality and should be taken seriously – now more than ever,” they said.

“We South Coasters need to stand up and protect what’s rightfully ours. We need more people to get involved as this is a serious issue which can affect us later,” said Paddy Norman of the Bendigo Conservation Group.

A spokesman for Eni, said all questions and clarifications voiced at the meeting were noted and would be included in the final report.

Eni’s draft report is available at www.erm.com/eni-exploration-eia. The public has until next Thursday, October 25 to comment on the report.

All comments received will be included in the final EIA report.

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