We trust the foxes to take care of the henhouse

Photo credit: abc.net.au

You might remember my previous post about the Gorgon gas development on Barrow Island: it’s a Class A nature reserve and the Gorgon group of oil and gas multinationals reckon they can drill for gas there, store their carbon dioxide under the ground, and not cause any environmental damage.

Last week David Gravina linked to an article about the startup of the Gorgon project. WA premier Colin Barnett seems pretty happy with the new corporate ability to control the environment there:

“Barrow Island is a very special place. This island is a remnant of ancient Australia,” Mr Barnett said. “We trust Chevron and Shell and ExxonMobil to look after this island.”

Oh really? Let’s take a look at their records…

Chevron

• Contaminated water sources with their Lago Agrio oil field in Ecuador (see the documentary Crude for more info on this)
• Dumped toxic materials from their refineries in Richmond, California into water supplies
• Been fined $2 million by the government of Angola for an oil spill
• Violated the USA’s Clean Air Act multiple times, with emissions of hazardous gases from its refineries and loading terminals
• Responsible for the deaths of environmental activists in Nigeria, during a non-violent protest at their Niger Delta facility (see the Drilling and Killing article for more info on this incident)

Shell

• Has one of the worst safety records for an oil and gas corporation
• Is known to make misleading advertisments and indulge in greenwash about the environmental damage done by its operations
• Repeatedly violated the USA’s Clean Air Act
• Is suspected of collaborating in military executions of Nigerians (including Ken Saro-Wiwo) who protested at their refineries.

ExxonMobil

• Responsible for the Exxon Valdez oil spill (11 million gallons) with the effects of the 50,000+ animal deaths still felt 20 years later
• Responsible for the Brooklyn oil spill (17 million gallons)
• Openly funds global warming skeptic groups
• Is known to have illegally traded with Sudan and Iraq, and bribed the President of Kazakhstan
• Is responsible for human rights violations at its Aceh refinery in Indonesia

I didn’t even have to dig very hard to uncover these incidents. They’re all on the public record. But hey, there’s a few jobs and some money at stake, so who cares?

Somehow, I’m not very confident that the rare and endangered animals and plants at Barrow Island will be able to survive its occupation by the Gorgon group. Premier Barnett, and the previous Gallop government who put this deal in motion, and federal Minister for the Environment Peter Garrett who approved it, should be ashamed of themselves.