Greenpeace NZ boats tailing world’s biggest seismic blasting ship

3 January: Greenpeace New Zealand is on the tail of the biggest seismic surveying ship in the world as it blasts the sea floor in a search for deep sea oil, about 20 nautical miles off the coast of Wairarapa.

Early this morning, a team including members of Greenpeace and local iwi set out in two RHIBs to confront the 125-metre long seismic blasting ship, the Amazon Warrior, as it searches for oil off the East Coast of New Zealand on behalf of oil giants Statoil and Chevron.

Greenpeace climate campaigner, Kate Simcock, is currently onboard one of the small boats and will deliver a message signed by over 60,000 New Zealanders.

“In order to find oil, this ship is blasting sound waves into the ocean every 8 seconds, 24 hours a day, from arrays that are the length of 80 rugby fields,” she says.

“This is the very oil that science says can’t be burned if we are to avoid a climate catastrophe.

“The oil industry describes the seismic blasts as comparable in sound to an underwater volcano. Just imagine how distressing it is for the dolphins and whales who live here.

“It’s a complete betrayal that our Government has invited this climate-wrecking beast to roam our unique coastlines.”

As the day progresses the crew will be monitoring the Amazon Warrior and its support vessels as they search for oil.

This will include taking underwater recordings of the seismic blasts that can deafen whales, and collecting data which will be fed through to scientists to measure the effects on marine life.

Also on-board is Polynesian voyaging waka captain and East Coast resident, Reuben Raihania Tipoki (Ngāti Kahungunu).

He will be delivering a message on behalf of 80 indigenous communities from the East Coast of New Zealand, calling on Statoil and Chevron to cease activities in their waters. Almost 14,000 New Zealanders have signed on to the letter.

Simcock says Greenpeace has had to make the 20-mile trip in inflatables to find the Amazon Warrior because it seems to have been avoiding coming into port since it arrived in New Zealand in November last year.

This includes illegally switching off its mandatory AIS tracking safety device for days on end throughout the November 14, 7.8 earthquake and tsunami threat, and having people and supplies delivered to it by boat and helicopter.

“The obligatory Marine Mammal Impact Assessment was also not published until we asked for it. These examples highlight why it's more important than ever to have citizens monitoring this climate

-killing industry - it’s clearly not being regulated well by the Government,” Simcock says.
“This oil exploration machine may think it can avoid making land in New Zealand and do its dirty business out of sight and out of mind, but we want them to know they’re not safe from protest out on the ocean either.

“Our message to the Government and the oil industry is this: We will show New Zealanders how the blasting of our marine environment is causing distress to our unique whales and dolphins - all in the name of climate-wrecking oil. We will peacefully resist this beast until it leaves our waters”.

ENDS

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