New oil leak into North Sea met with silence

Dr Gary Robertshaw
August 2011

Shell confirmed in August 2011 that one of its platforms was leaking oil into the North Sea. The spill could affect ecosystems in the area and raises worrying parallels with the BP oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010 with respect to lack of disclosure and transparency.

Royal Dutch Shell is trying to contain the oil leak at its Gannet Alpha platform in the North Sea, but not surprisingly it has declined to comment on the size of the leak. "We have stemmed the leak significantly and we are taking further measures to isolate it. The subsea well has been shut in, and the flow line is being depressurised." a Shell spokesman said.

Green party co-leader Patrick Harvie said: "It's too early to tell how serious this spill is, but it is imperative now that Shell act both urgently and efficiently. They must also keep the public and the authorities properly informed about progress, something BP failed to do during the Gulf of Mexico disaster last year. Whatever the outcome of this incident, it certainly underlines the need for the oil industry to publish proper response plans, as Greenpeace have been asking them to do. If they refuse to do so, ministers should act to make it a condition of their licences."

This new leak and Shell�s response to it are symptomatic on the oil industry�s wider attitude towards the environment. The oil industry spends vast amounts of money from its huge profits on contradicting global warming studies and vociferously questioning the scientific evidence, spreading confusion and uncertainty amongst consumers. It sponsors and funds research directed at challenging global warming. Yet, when it�s caught leaking oil into the oceans and destroying ecosystems it remains conspicuously silent. Worse still, the oil industry is guilty of total arrogance and impunity even when the extent of its destruction is uncovered.

For example, the US oil giant Chevron was fined $8.6bn (£5.3bn) by a court in Ecuador for polluting the country�s Amazon region. Campaigners claim that the company dumped billions of gallons of toxic materials into the Amazon rivers damaging crops and killing farm animals. The company was also told it would have to pay a 10% legally mandated reparations fee, which brings the total penalty to $9.5bn (£5.9bn). Chevron�s response? It has condemned the ruling as fraudulent and has said it will appeal.