South Africans have rallied together in protest against Shell and CGG’s Seismic Surveys, which are set to begin in December. The project will, for five months, drag up to 48 air guns methodically through 6 011km² of the ocean surface, firing extremely loud shock wave emissions that penetrate through 3km of water and 40km into the Earth’s crust below the seabed.
There are concerns that this will cause irreversible damage to a region of South Africa renowned for its pristine coastline. Adding salt to the wound: the project is scheduled to take place during peak whale migration season.
Shell has appointed Shearwater GeoServices to conduct the survey. Capetonians awaited the unwelcome arrival of the Amazon Warrior, a 130-metre seismic blasting vessel, at Cape Town Harbour on Sunday, November 21.
Despite the uproar, the South African government remained tight-lipped, only breaking its silence on Wednesday. The Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment released an official statement, stating that the Minister of Minerals Resources and Energy is responsible for the administration of the MPRDA and is the individual who makes the final decision regarding the authorisation of the seismic survey.
In essence, they said a whole lot of nothing, writes Cape {town} Etc’s, Robyn Simpson. And Facebook users seem to agree.
“So how about you, as the mandated “protectors” of the environment, take the dept of mineral affairs to court to overthrow their fatally flawed decision taken during state capture years?” said one user in the comments section of the post.
Whilst the sector assigned to protect our environment is busy pointing fingers at everybody else, Parley for the Oceans, a global collaboration network of creators, thinkers and leaders taking action to protect our oceans released a video that is circulating on social media.
The clip represents just a handful of thousands of voices who, unlike the MPRDA, are not willing to sign away our coastlines.
WATCH:
Video by Oceans Collective / @EyeForce
View this post on Instagram
“You can stand with our Parley South Africa team and the communities in South Africa objecting to the destruction and exploitation of South Africa’s Wild Coast by signing the petition and amplifying [the] message by sharing this video. The time for climate justice is now. #oceansnotoil.” the Instagram post is captioned.
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Picture: Screenshot