Protesters rally as oil company updates DCC

Save Otakou from Oil Drilling spokeswoman Niamh O'Flynn leads a protest against the prospect of...
Save Otakou from Oil Drilling spokeswoman Niamh O'Flynn leads a protest against the prospect of deep sea oil drilling off the coast of Otago outside the Dunedin Public Art Gallery yesterday. Photo by Jane Dawber.
Protesters holding placards with declarations such as "Drill, Spill and Kill" and "Don't Spoil our Coast" stood their ground outside a meeting between the Dunedin City Council and oil company Anadarko yesterday.

About 50 people protested outside the Dunedin Public Art Gallery where the meeting took place.

Save Otakou from Oil Drilling spokeswoman Niamh O'Flynn said Anadarko did not have a good environmental track record and had refused to hold a public meeting in Dunedin.

"They are not welcome here. They've refused a public meeting so we've had to come to them."

The Government needed to look past oil and invest in clean energy, she said.

"There is way more economic prosperity in clean energy."

While Anadarko might be putting off drilling for 18 months, the group would not be going away.

"We'll be back here then and putting up a fight."

Anadarko New Zealand corporate affairs manager Alan Seay said the meeting was a chance to update the council on the company's plans, especially its decision not to begin its drilling programme until the summer of 2012 "at the earliest" due to the lack of an available rig.

The company also brought along its environmental protection and safety specialist to outline to the council its approach to environmental issues, he said.

"We have an excellent track record."

If the drilling programme progressed the company would look at "sharing information" with the public, even though there was no requirement for it to do so. How it would do that was still open to question, Mr Seay said.

Mayor Dave Cull said it would be "fair to say" councillors who attended the informal briefing were impressed with the safety and environmental protection measures the company spoke about.

The company did not need permission from the council to drill and the council had nothing to gain in direct revenue from the company but it was an opportunity for the company to try to allay concerns people had as a result of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

Councillors spoke to the company about the desirability of engaging the community to provide it with information that could give it "peace of mind", Mr Cull said.

rebecca.fox@odt.co.nz

 

 

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