Members of Climate Justice Taranaki will present a petition with over 2700 signatures to the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) hearing in New Plymouth this Tuesday opposing the plans of Australian oil and gas company Beach Energy to drill for more fossil fuels off the Taranaki coast.

"We are taking the voices of 2700 people to the EPA hearing in New Plymouth to demand an end to oil and gas drilling in Taranaki. Fossil fuel mining threatens entire marine ecosystems and contributes to ocean acidification and deoxygenation. There are also risks to kai moana and other traditional food gathering on the coast. Drilling and discharging harmful substances in such an important area is irresponsible. Beach Energy Resources NZ (Kupe) Limited should not be granted a marine discharge consent by the EPA for drilling more wells at the existing Kupe Platform some 30km off Manaia in South Taranaki" says Tuhi-Ao Bailey, a member of Climate Justice Taranaki.

"Critically, we are in a climate emergency. Getting off fossil fuels is crucial. There is no excuse to drill for more oil or gas when the window for reducing emissions to minimise climate catastrophes is closing. We need to reduce our energy demand fast and transition onto sustainable renewable energy instead. It is ludicrous that the current EEZ regulations do not allow the consideration of impacts on the climate from proposed activities" says Urs Signer, a member of Climate Justice Taranaki.

"Aotearoa is the global seabird capital and home to over half of the world’s marine mammal species. The South Taranaki Bight is a hot spot, hosting six endangered species, one vulnerable species and 18 other species of marine mammals with too little data to even assess. We also have a genetically distinct Blue whale population in the Bight. Kororā, the Little penguin sometimes travel here all the way from Marlborough Sounds to feed. We are requesting the EPA Board of Inquiry to refuse all of Beach Energy's consent applications associated with its planned drilling program at the Kupe field" says Catherine Cheung, a member of Climate Justice Taranaki.

Tuhi-Ao Bailey will present the petition to the EPA on Tuesday, 6th December, somewhere between 3.30pm and 5pm. The hearing is open to the public and is held at the Devon Hotel in New Plymouth. More information can be found on the EPA website: https://www.epa.govt.nz/public-consultations/in-progress/beach/

The petition: https://community.greenpeace.org.nz/petitions/refuse-beach-energy-drilling-consent

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