Cape Town — Despite a massive outcry, oil giant Shell has not given up its hopes of seeking to conduct a seismic survey off the ecologically sensitive Wild Coast. Authorisation granted by the Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy was deemed unlawful by the Makhanda High Court on September 1, 2022. In the latest development, the Gqeberha High Court will hear arguments from both the minister and Shell on why they should be granted leave to appeal the Makhanda court ruling.
The initial judgment outlined a number of reasons why the survey could not be conducted, including the fact that local communities whose cultural and subsistence fishing rights would be affected were not consulted in any meaningful way. It also had significant criticism for the Department of Minerals and Energy under Minister Gwede Mantashe and made mention of the implications of the proposed seismic survey for both environmental harm and climate change.
Coastal communities and fishers, who have opposed the geological project since its outset, will challenge the appeal. They will be joined by non-governmental organisations including Sustaining the Wild Coast, All Rise, Natural Justice and Greenpeace Africa, represented by the Legal Resources Centre, Richard Spoor Attorneys and Cullinan & Associates.
Communities' struggle against the survey
In 2014, a government decision granted Shell permission to pursue seismic scanning of an area situated over 20km off the Eastern Cape coast. It resulted in a cascade of opposition that, to date, has lasted more than eight years.
While Shell claimed to be operating within the bounds of the law, due to its stakeholder consultation process as part of the Environmental Management Programme during 2013 and passing an Environmental Compliance audit, a potential "loophole" may been exploited by the petroleum corporation due to the fact that Shell received an environmental impact assessment in 2014, five years before small-scale fishers were granted fishing rights in 2019. Thus, this factor excluded the coastal communities' concerns from the EIA.
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Coastal communities' struggle against Shell has been fraught with complications. In 2021, then-acting justice Avinash Govindjee dismissed an application to interdict the seismic survey on the basis that "irreparable harm" to marine species was not proved.
Non-governmental groups slammed the decision. "The decision to allow Shell to continue with its plans to destroy the Wild Coast is very disappointing. Not only will the blasting destroy precious biodiverse ecosystems, but it will also destroy the livelihoods of local communities, all in the name of profit," said Happy Khambule of Greenpeace Africa.
Similarly, Pooven Moodley of Natural Justice said: "The outcome is very unfortunate, especially since the judge did not recognise the urgency of the interdict and the immediate threat the seismic surveys pose to the environment, marine life and local communities."
Seismic surveys: What are they?
The seismic survey process involves blasting the seafloor with highly powered airguns at intervals, and then measuring the echoes, which helps map out oil and gas reserves, according to Deutsche Welle. The process can continue for weeks or months at a time. The sound of the blasts can travel for hundreds of kilometres. Ecologists believe the exploration technique could upset the behavior of marine animals including their feeding, reproduction and migration patterns, especially animals like whales who depend on their sense of hearing.
