What more can we do?

I recently joined Greenpeace.

The only reason I joined was the young man used the words "te Whānau ā Apanui". Having just been blessed enough to be at a conference where Dayle Takitimu spoke about the struggles of her iwi - it made perfect sense to do something - and joining Greenpeace made perfect sense.

In the media here in New Zealand the plight of this Iwi has been brushed under the mat - or almost ignored which I cannot believe. It is not a Iwi issue - it will affect everyone.

Recently companies have tendered for the right to explore for oil after some of our most pristine water in what is known as the Raukumara basin. It is a multi-BILLION dollar operation. The New Zealand government awarded, a Brazilian company, Petrobra, an exploration permit for 12,330 km. I've had the privilege to swim in the water where this exploration will share and it is perfect water - perfect, and now this.

Here are some things you need to know:

Who are Petrobra?
I would probably not be alone if I thought that zero incidents would be acceptable for the oil drilling industry, but Petrobra has had many, of which six happened in the course of one year with an oilspill of more than one million litres polluting Rio de Janeiro's picture-postcard Guanabara Bay. A decade later – there are still no fish or crab growing. http://youtu.be/WBZNKcQ4ba8 The website page “Caddie in the Council” reports that “the influential publication Bloomberg Business Week made the dire assessment that the Brazilian owned Petrobras is ‘more exposed than any oil company on the planet to the risk of an accident similar to the Deep water Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the largest in U.S. history’ http://manu.org.nz/2010/07/05/whats-wrong-with-drilling-east-cape/ This is the company that the government awarded an exploration permit.

A Picture paints a thousand words




 

This is what the water looked like when I was there last year. I wish I could do justice by describing what it was like to swim there. At the time this photo was taken there was a local kura exploring the sides and eventually went for their swimming session there and activity that can be potentially lost forever... .

 

 



Government reaction

The most disturbing factor that I have had the most difficulty understanding has been the government reaction to an Iwi, or basically the local community of the Raukumara Basin. Recently, without consultation or information, the local waters of Whanau-a-Apanui have had the following visitors, a Petrobras survey boat, Flotilla observing (1 arrest made on Te te Whānau ā Apanui skipper), 3 Navy warships, and Airforce aircraft and police mobilization. Not only this the Iwi has been told that there has been notification lodged, of which the government is entertaining a permit for for petroleum and gas exploration inland at Raukumara ranges / forest park – with no consultation to date with Iwi.

The risk is too great

According to the information that is at hand, Petrobras will be drilling three times the distance of the latest BP rig disaster off the Coast of Mexico. There is no existing technology to support this kind of drilling. The floor in which the drilling will be down has been proven to be tectronically unsafe with an earthquake being recorded the week of the conference.

The Land of the free – just not a free trade agreement

One of the greatest things about living in Aotearoa is the green clean image and being the land of democracy. However, this goes to show that there are some things that our government is willing to do - at the expense and regardless of the voice of the people, to make some money and be a part of a free trade agreement.



Robert Ruha has said "Te Whānau ā Apanui will continue to oppose deep sea drilling in its waters now and forever. We will continue to let the Government know that te Whānau ā Apanui will oppose this exploitation of the environment for as long as it takes, and in as many forms as that opposition is necessary, until deep sea oil drilling and inland mining in our tribal territory is off the agenda forever." To which Greenpeace Executive Director Bunny McDiarmid added, from the waters of the Raukumara Basin, as skipper on Tiama.“This is a determined opposition, a united front against deep sea oil exploration that sent a clear message to international oil giants that New Zealanders do not want deep sea oil exploration”,

So I joined Greenpeace and stand with te Whānau ā Apanui in defending their tribal waters and land

Mxo