Greenpeace activists have today launched a protest in the North
Sea to call out Shell’s plans to abandon an estimated 11,000
tonnes of oil on the seabed[1].
This morning the Greenpeace ship Esperanza approached the
500m exclusion zone of Shell’s platform in the Brent oil field,
off the Shetland Islands, with protestors on board waving banners
stating: “Shell, the ocean is not your dump”.
Dr Christian Bussau, Greenpeace marine biologist, said:
“Shell still wants to dismantle the platforms on the cheap, and
the UK government is colluding with them to allow it.
“Shell must dismantle this platform safely on-shore, which
would be better for the environment and create jobs in an
industry that’s currently struggling.
“Shell is falling behind its competitors. It must urgently
get out of the dirty oil and gas industry and pivot its business
to renewable energy.”
Shell has felt the pressure in recent months after the
global pandemic saw oil demand plummet and accelerated the need
for fossil fuel companies to transform their businesses and to
pivot to renewable energy.
According to Shell’s decommissioning proposals, it will
leave behind the remains of four platforms in the Brent oil
field. Shell estimates those platforms contain 640,000 cubic
metres of oily water and 40,000 cubic metres of oily sediment
with a total content of more than 11,000 tonnes of oil.
[1]
Shell’s biggest competitor, BP, unveiled an ambitious
climate plan earlier this month which included a pledge to cut
oil and gas production by 40 per cent over the next 10
years.
Campaigners have criticised Shell’s lack of action on
climate, and today’s protest highlights further how Shell is
failing to take responsibility for its harmful impact on the
environment.
Greenpeace is calling on Shell to get out of the oil and
gas exploration business now and switch completely to renewable
energy.
In October last year, the member states of the OSPAR
Commission (Convention for the Protection of the Marine
Environment of the North-East Atlantic) met in London and
discussed Shell's plans, with the UK government indicating its
approval. But the final decision has been postponed and is
pending.
An approval from the member states would set a dangerous
precedent for other oil companies and further the destruction of
the North Sea.
A recent Greenpeace Germany
report shows that emissions from oil and gas in
the North Sea exceed the CO2 budget --
as outlined in the Paris agreement -- of the UK and
Norway combined, and are set to increase.
ENDS
Photos are available here:
https://media.greenpeace.org/collection/27MZIFJLG5AQ0
Videos are available here:
https://t1p.de/kzz3
Notes for editors
The Greenpeace ships Esperanza and Rainbow Warrior are on a
month-long investigation and peaceful protest tour to document
the impacts the extraction of fossil fuels is making in the North
Sea. Teams on board will gather evidence of the extreme
industrialisation of the region by the oil and gas industry,
which has been polluting the ocean, fueling the climate crisis
and exacerbating inequality with its “business as usual"
operation model.
References:
[1] Shell U.K. Limited, BRENT
DECOMMISSIONING DEROGATION ASSESSMENT - An Assessment of
Proposals for the Disposal of the Disused Steel and Concrete
Substructures of the Brent Field Installations,
November 2018. Page 311, table 68.
