Fracking in the Karoo!

[ToyX4]

Most of you probably know about Shell's plans to explore for gas in the Karoo. This has me boiling over!

90% of my petrol and diesel useage, I bought from Shell. When I heard about this, I immediately stopped to put anything Shell into my vehicles.
I won't even buy a Coke from a Shell station. Shell will not see my money again!

I copied the following from the community forum http://www.4x4community.co.za/forum/sho ... post731080" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Lets hear your thoughts on this.

This is the content of a short speech given on Friday night 25 March 2011 in Cape Town by Lewis Gordon Pugh OIG (a.k.a. the Human Polar Bear) about the proposed fracking for gas in the Karoo, by Shell.


Ladies and gentlemen, thank for the opportunity to address you. My name is Lewis Pugh.

This evening, I want to take you back to the early 1990's in this country. You may remember them well.

Nelson Mandela had been released. There was euphoria in the air. However, there was also widespread violence and deep fear. This country teetered on the brink of a civil war. But somehow, somehow, we averted it. It was a
miracle!

And it happened because we had incredible leaders. Leaders who sought calm.. Leaders who had vision. So in spite of all the violence, they sat down and negotiated a New Constitution.

I will never forget holding the Constitution in my hands for the first time.

I was a young law student at the University of Cape Town. This was the cement that brought peace to our land. This was the document, which held our country together. The rights contained herein, made us one.

I remember thinking to myself - never again will the Rights of South Africans be trampled upon.

Now every one of us - every man and every women - black, white, coloured, Indian, believer and non believer - has the right to vote. We all have the Right to Life. And our children have the right to a basic education. These
rights are enshrined in our Constitution.

These rights were the dreams of Oliver Tambo. These rights were the dreams of Nelson Mandela. These rights were the dreams of Mahatma Gandhi, of Desmond Tutu and of Molly Blackburn. These rights were our dreams.

People fought - and died - so that we could enjoy these rights today.

Also enshrined in our Constitution, is the Right to a Healthy Environment and the Right to Water. Our Constitution states that we have the Right to have our environment protected for the benefit of our generation and for the benefit of future generations.

Fellow South Africans, let us not dishonour these rights. Let us not dishonour those men and women who fought and died for these rights. Let us not allow corporate greed to disrespect our Constitution and desecrate our
environment.

Never, ever did I think that there would be a debate in this arid country about which was more important - gas or water. We can survive without gas.... We cannot live without water.

If we damage our limited water supply - and fracking will do just that we will have conflict again here in South Africa. Look around the world. Wherever you damage the environment you have conflict.

Fellow South Africans, we have had enough conflict in this land - now is the time for peace.

A few months ago I gave a speech with former President of Costa Rica. Afterwards I asked him "Mr President, how do you balance the demands of development against the need to protect the environment?"

He looked at me and said : "It is not a balancing act. It is a simple business decision. If we cut down our forests in Costa Rica to satisfy a timber company, what will be left for our future?"

But he pointed out : "It is also a moral decision. It would be morally wrong to chop down our forests and leave nothing for my children and my grandchildren."

Ladies and gentlemen, that is what is at stake here today: Our children's future. And that of our children s children.

There may be gas beneath our ground in the Karoo. But are we prepared to destroy our environment for 5 to 10 years worth of fossil fuel and further damage our climate?

Yes, people will be employed - but for a short while. And when the drilling is over, and Shell have packed their bags and disappeared, then what? Who will be there to clean up? And what jobs will our children be able to eke
out?

Now Shell will tell you that their intentions are honourable. That fracking in the Karoo will not damage our environment. That they will not contaminate our precious water. That they will bring jobs to South Africa.

That gas is clean and green. And that they will help secure our energy supplies.

When I hear this - I have one burning question. Why should we trust them? Africa is to Shell what the Gulf of Mexico is to BP.


Shell, you have a shocking record here in Africa. Just look at your operations in Nigeria. You have spilt more than 9 million barrels of crude oil into the Niger Delta. That's twice the amount of oil that BP spilt into the Gulf of Mexico.

You were found guilty of bribing Nigerian officials - and to make the case go away in America - you paid an admission of guilt fine of US$48 million.

And to top it all, you stand accused of being complicit in the execution of Nigeria's leading environmental campaigner - Ken Saro-Wira and 8 other activists.

If you were innocent, why did you pay US$15.5 million to the widows and children to settle the case out of Court?

Shell, the path you want us to take us down is not sustainable. I have visited the Arctic for 7 summers in a row. I have seen the tundra thawing.

I have seen the retreating glaciers. And I have seen the melting sea ice. And I have seen the impact of global warming from the Himalayas all the way down to the low-lying Maldive Islands. Wherever I go - I see it.

Now is the time for change. We cannot drill our way out of the energy crisis. The era of fossil fuels is over. We must invest in renewable energy. And we must not delay!

Shell, we look to the north of our continent and we see how people got tired of political tyranny. We have watched as despots, who have ruled ruthlessly year after year, have been toppled in a matter of weeks.

We too are tired. Tired of corporate tyranny. Tired of your short term, unsustainable practices.

We watched as Dr Ian Player, a game ranger from Natal, and his friends, took on Rio Tinto (one of the biggest mining companies in the world) and won.

And we watched as young activists from across Europe, brought you down to your knees, when you tried to dump an enormous oil rig into the North Sea.

Shell, we do not want our Karoo to become another Niger Delta.

Do not underestimate us. Goliath can be brought down. We are proud of what we have achieved in this young democracy - and we are not about to let your company come in and destroy it.

So let this be a Call to Arms to everyone across South Africa, who is sitting in the shadow of Goliath: Stand up and demand these fundamental human rights promised to you by our Constitution. Use your voices - tweet, blog, petition, rally the weight of your neighbours and of people in power.

Let us speak out from every hilltop. Let us not go quietly into this bleak future.

Let me end off by saying this - You have lit a fire in our bellies, which no man or woman can extinguish. And if we need to, we will take this fight all the way from your petrol pumps to the very highest Court in this land. We will take this fight from the farms and towns of the Karoo to the streets of London and Amsterdam. And we will take this fight to every one of your shareholders. And I have no doubt, that in the end, good will triumph over evil.

[Family_Dog]

Let's hope that the powers that be are not swayed (nor bribed ) by Shell into making the wrong decision. The Karoo belongs to us, the people of South Africa and must be protected from foreign meddling.


-F_D

[luxman]

That's the spirit, I agree 100%

[swartvark]

Ja ek stem saam.

[Niel]

stem Eric

[Mud Dog]

There is an genuine petition site where I have petitioned already last week ..... will look for that link again and post it here.

Here we are ..... go and sign .... every signature counts. It was just under 2000 signatures when I last looked .... not enough at all.

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/295/--if ... onkerning/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[george]

I spoke to a farmer in the Karoo that is very worried about this.At this point it looks like the goverment is actually considering this since they own the rights this thing could become a reality.

[Mud Dog]

Sadly they are really considering it and money talks.

Consider that the governing party is desperately on the lookout for more money to fund the corruption machine and gravy trains ... the poor are clamouring for housing / basic services / hunger relief / social grants / education / health care etc. etc. etc. The Govt has fallen into disarray and is pathetically behind on all election promises while the fat-cats continue to line their pockets and those of their family members. Useless job portfolios are still being created ad hoc to make room for more gravy train passengers ..... and the funding is running out. They are desperate and will stop at almost nothing to gain the necessary funding to continue on their path of destruction.

The tax base has been and continues to be raped .... it's not enough to sustain their greed, now they are turning their attention to the land itself. :x

[pietpetoors]

I also received this one by email. 4x4s are the most thirsty non-commercial vehicles on the road, imagine we can get all 4x4s to boycot Shell.

In our country we change the names of roads, dams and companies. We have asked Shell for a guarantee that if they proceed with the project, that they would change their name and drop the “S’.

They will make life ShearHELL for all those in the Karoo.

Boycott SHELL – they won’t stop their plans on moral grounds and they have enough money to bribe whoever they need to but if their pockets are affected then maybe they will look to alternate solutions.

We have plenty of sun and wind in the Karoo, why not use solar and wind energy?

Those of you who may own garages that sell Shell fuel, we are NOT targeting you, but you will be affected too. Put pressure on Shell to change their plans…and to do it quickly before EVERYONE suffers.

Sign the ‘Stop Fracking in the Karoo’ petition: http://www.thepetitionsite.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Click here for direct link

Karoo in few years time

This email is doing the rounds – showing gas wells back to back in the US, which is what could happen in the Karoo as Shell has said that each well requires one hectare, but they haven’t said they can join hectare to hectare. Shell has also said that they can run 14 plus wells from each well pad, extending horizontally for 2.5 kilometres at depths of 4-5km.

Try and sell your land when it looks like this on the surface plus, when the groundwater is polluted by the millions of litres of toxic chemicals that lie beneath and no one can live there because they get sick!!!

Please forward to as many people as possible!

Also visit this web site
http://www.karoospace.co.za/karoo-space ... ple-say-no

[Niel]

I already do

[pietpetoors]

Me too, there is not even a Shell garage in Langebaan

[Mud Dog]

Me too, there is not even a Shell garage in Langebaan

Very noble of you Pieter!

[rebuilder]

Petition sitting on 3732 now.

[ChrisF]

There is a Shell 800m from my house ... I drive past it to the Engen .... purely due to their repeated pathetic service levels, speaking to the owner did not help, so I voted with my feet.

[Mud Dog]

Petition sitting on 3732 now.

C'mon guys, add your voices!

[Karoo]

Very important topic and very worrying as most of our concerns are surfacing as this process continues, Golder is not independent and merely going through the motions to adhere to current legislation.
Farmers concerns are not being addressed and the most burning/damaging anti fracking questions are merely being glossed over or put off to a later date.
Lies about job creation have now surfaced after the governments "drive" for job creation ,we were told by shell no local jobs will be created at first EMP meetings.
Will update as we go along but some interesting reading to be found on google just enter fracking.
Join groups on facebook "CHASE SHELL OIL out of the Karoo" .
Our thanx go out to Jonathan Deal an author who along with TKAG and local attorney Derrick Light are heading our fight against big oil in their efforts to poison vast tracts of the karoo.

[mikama]

Dis nou 3968

[luckyhit]

#5,102
9:53 pm April 12
Reinhardt Venter
South Africa

did my part!!

[Mouter]

I have (S)HELL, BP & Engen all 600m from my house. Guess where I go!

Fully support any petition out there

[george]

looking better for a while

Cabinet endorses fracking moratorium
ape Town - The cabinet has endorsed the decision by the mineral resources department to invoke a moratorium on licences in the Karoo Basin where "fracking" is proposed.

"Fracking" is hydraulic fracturing, a technique for extracting shale gas from deep underground by pumping a pressurised mixture of water, sand and chemicals down drill holes.

The department would lead a multi-disciplinary team, including the trade and industry and science and technology departments, to research the full implications of the proposed fracking, government spokesperson Jimmy Manyi told a media briefing following cabinet's regular fortnightly meeting.

"Cabinet has made it very clear that (a) clean environment together with all the ecological aspects will not be compromised," he said.

On Wednesday, it emerged that there was little chance that oil giant Shell's plans to prospect for shale gas in the Karoo using the "fracking" method would have an impact on South Africa's bid to host the square kilometre array (SKA) radio telescope.

In written reply to a question in the National Council of Provinces, Science and Technology Minister Naledi Pandor said an application for prospecting had no impact on South Africa's bid to host the SKA.

"An application can only have impact if granted," she said.

"If the Shell application is granted, and if Shell uses communication systems with frequency ranges that interfere with radio telescope operations, the prospecting will affect radio astronomy."

However, the South African SKA project office (SASPO) had proactively met with Shell and Golder Associates to indicate communications restrictions.

"All operations in the Karoo will be comprehensively addressed through regulations under the Astronomy Geographic Advantage Act 2007, which are expected to be finalised in the 2012/13 financial year, following consideration of the outcomes of the public consultations on the astronomy regulations," Pandor said.

The act gives the sole right to regulate the zone in which the SKA will operate to the minister of science and technology.

South Africa and Australia were shortlisted in 2006 as locations for the SKA project.

The SKA will cost about €2bn to build, and require between €150m and €200m a year, for 50 years, to maintain and operate.

An announcement on who has won the bid will be made early next year.

The endorsement was welcomed by the Treasure Karoo Action Group (TKAG).

"Cabinet clearly realised what other countries have realised - the issue of fracking is too complex to be decided on by one single authority or one single department."

A multi-disciplinary team should look at an issue of this magnitude.

"From our side, we will now make sure we cooperate with and give all the assistance we can to government as they make sure that every aspect of the environmental impact assessment is taken care of," TKAG said.

[pietpetoors]

Seems like Fracking is the big craze under oil companies. Now it is Sasol
This article was emailed to me, I guess it must be in today's Beeld. Sorry for the non-afrikaans guys, perhaps somebody can find the English version and post it here.

Sasol, ander wil gas ontgin in Vrystaat
2011-06-22 07:00

Elise Tempelhoff

Johannesburg – ’n Multinasionale konsortium, waarvan Sasol deel is, het sy oë op ’n groot deel van die suidelike Drakensberg, KwaZulu-Natal en die Vrystaat vir die ontginning van gas deur hidro-breking.

Robin Barnsley, president van Kwanalu, die KwaZulu-Natalse arm van AgriSA, het Dinsdag gesê hy het onlangs “toevallig” van Sasol se planne uitgevind.

Volgens Barnsley voel die boere in KwaZulu-Natal oorweldig deur al die aansoeke om mynbou, gasontginning en prospektering vir steenkool en ander metale in die provinsie.

Cobus Jansen, Sasol se mediabestuurder, het gister bevestig dié maatskappy is saam met sy Noorse vennoot, Statoil en Chesapeake, Amerikaanse gasprodusent (hidrobreker), besig om ’n gebied van 88 000 km² te fynkam op soek na skaliegas.

Volgens Jansen is die konsortium nog net besig met studies op ’n rekenaar. Die gebied sluit ook ’n deel van die Karoo en die Oos-Kaap in.

Barnsley het gesê die gebied waarin die konsortium belang stel vir hidrobreking is in van die mooiste en waterrykste dele van die Drakensberg. Baie van KwaZulu-Natal se grootste riviere, soos die Umko-maas- en Umgenirivier, ontspring in dié gebied.

Benewens dié planne vir die prospektering van gas is KwaZulu-Natal se boere die laaste tyd oorval deur prospekteeraansoeke. Dr. Koos Pretorius, direkteur van die Federasie vir ’n Volhoubare Omgewing, het gesê hy weet van minstens 1 000 prospekteeraansoeke vir KwaZulu-Natal wat by die departement van mynbou ingedien is.

Barnsley het gesê die soeke na energiebronne in dié provinsie gaan die gebied se water heeltemal verwoes.

Boere in KwaZulu-Natal het gedink die gas-en-steenkoolontginningskrisis is net “’n Karoo-en-Mpumalanga-probleem”, maar nou steek dit daar ook kop uit.

Jansen het gesê die konsortium het vir ’n jaar vergunning by die Petroleum-agentskap van Suid-Afrika gekry om na die gas te soek.

“Ons vermoed dit is skaliegas. Sasol het onlangs ’n vennootskap met Talisman Energy, ’n Kanadese maatskappy, gesluit vir hidrobreking in Kanada. Ons is besig om met die beste tegnologie ter wêreld gas in Kanada met behulp van hidrobreking te ontgin.

“Ons is ’n verantwoordelike maatskappy en sal nooit die omgewing opoffer vir gasontginning nie.”

Hy het bygevoeg die ontdekking van ’n groot hoeveelheid aardgas kan Suid-Afrika uit sy energiekrisis help en ’n groot aantal werkgeleenthede skep.

“Ons is bewus van die moratorium op hidrobreking en daarom mag ons in dié stadium geen gate boor nie.” Hy het beloof die burgerlike gemeenskap sal ten volle ingelig word oor Sasol en sy vennote se planne.

Barnsley het Sasol gewaarsku dat die boere in KwaZulu-Natal nie aan die slaap is nie en hulle dophou en sal verseker dat hulle binne die raamwerk van die wet optree.

[pietpetoors]

Ek sien die ou van Sasol sê

“Ons is ’n verantwoordelike maatskappy en sal nooit die omgewing opoffer vir gasontginning nie.”

Hy het bygevoeg die ontdekking van ’n groot hoeveelheid aardgas kan Suid-Afrika uit sy energiekrisis help en ’n groot aantal werkgeleenthede skep.

Indien Sasol so 'n verantwoordelike maatskapy is kan hulle gerus huylle geld en energie belê in die ontwikkeling van alternatiewe energie soos sonkrag en waterstof. Hoekom wil dit olie maatskapye ons land se water verwoes as hulle behoort te weet dat die dae van petrol en diesel min raak.

[Andre du preez]

Manne ek weet te min om n goeie antwoord te gee.

Suid-afrika is maar klein plek , kyk net hoe lyk dit al reeds van bo-grondse myn werk. Sorry Sell dit is nie tyd vir julle om te neem nie maar om terug te gee.

Ons almal weet die werld verander elke dag, en daar saam wat is en nog sal wees,maaaaaaaarrrrrrr !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! kom ons kry dit reg die slag.

[Stubs]

just signed the petition, its on 14781......its just not right what they propose.....

[pietpetoors]

I see Shell is still trying their luck. The sad thing is one day they will bribe some government official and the deal will go on.

See article today
http://www.fin24.com/Economy/Shell-pled ... n-20110901" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Also whatch this web site to understand Fracking better. A Shell service station wont see me ever again
http://www.gaslandthemovie.com

[Mud Dog]

Pieter, that first link is removed or changed .... get this message;
The resource you are looking for has been removed, had its name changed, or is temporarily unavailable.

:?

[warthog]

Number 15 274.

[ChrisF]

saw a SHELL frack off t-shirt .... would LOVE such a sticker for my vehicles, and it seems a few thousand more people might be interested

[pietpetoors]

Andy I can still see it, I loaded in PDF for you

Shell pledges R1.4bn for Karoo exploration_ Fin24_ Economy.pdf

Frack off Shell

(191.84 KiB) Downloaded 52 times

[Mud Dog]

Thanks Pieter!