Oil Free Wellington drops banner from Statoil headquarters as Petroleum Summit opens
Today members of Oil Free Wellington have targeted the offices of Statoil, by attaching a banner reading 'Statoil out of
Northland: Stop Deep Sea Oil' to the entrance of Vodafone on the Quay Midland Park, where Statoil's New Zealand office
is located. The Norwegian oil company has been granted 15 year exploration permits off the coast of Northland.
"We've hung this banner today, as the Petroleum Summit opens in Auckland, to highlight the environmental destruction
which Statoil has planned for Northland and our climate." Said Oil Free Wellington spokesperson Jessie Dennis
"We're also here to stand in solidarity with those who have traveled with the Waiho Papa Moana Hikoi from Northland to
Auckland this week to show their opposition to Statoil's planned deep sea oil drilling."
Yesterday over a thousand people turned out in Auckland to join the Hikoi as it arrived in central Auckland and on final
leg to the Petroleum Summit.
Northland community groups have demanded Statoil cancel its seismic testing programme for this Summer to protect marine
life in the te Reinga Basin. It's feared that seismic testing planned for December will harm dolphins, whales, giant
squid and fish.
"Along with being incredibly risky, deep sea oil brings few benefits to Northland communities. There simply aren't the
lucrative jobs in the oil business for locals. Instead, the threats to their uses of the sea are all too real." Said
Dennis
"The dramatic effects of climate change are only going to get worse. We face floods, droughts, mass extinction and food
shortages as climate change accelerates. A just transition away from fossil fuels towards a more sustainable and
equitable society is the only way forward."
This action coincided with Auckland Greenpeace activists who this morning disrupted the opening of the Petroleum Summit.
Oil Free Wellington opposes all new fossil fuel exploration, and stands with the people of Northland in their struggle
against Statoil and deep sea oil.
ENDS