[sustran] Shell Tries to Greenwash Fracking [for gas for transport] in South Africa

[Todd Edelman]

Shell Tries to Greenwash Fracking [for gas for transport] in South Africa
by Andreas Spath
24.5.2011

http://www.care2.com/causes/environment/blog/shell-tries-to-greenwash-fracking-in-south-africa/

I've recently written about the moratorium the South African government 
has imposed on hydraulic fracturing, the polluting and water-intense 
method to extract natural gas from underground layers of shale rock, 
also referred to as fracking. While I was cautiously optimistic about 
this development, I also mentioned that the companies involved are 
unlikely to simply take it lying down.

Well, they're not. Shell, the multinational oil and gas giant that wants 
to explore for shale gas in 90,000 square kilometers of the semi-arid 
Karoo region, has been distributing flyers at petrol stations that aim 
to convince South Africans that fracking is a good thing. A closer look 
reveals that it's simply a case of corporate greenwashing -- an attempt 
to present an environmentally hazardous practice as clean and beneficial.

Don't trust Shell

The flyer, entitled Shell and the Karoo contains pictures of a happy 
family of locals, a beautiful Karoo landscape and what appears to be 
sparklingly clear swimming pool water. The text speaks emotively of 
Shell's "commitments to the People of South Africa" and of the Karoo as 
"a special place" that "we must preserve […] for our future and our 
children's future." There is talk of not competing with local 
inhabitants for their water needs, global best practices and 
consultation with experts and citizen advisory groups.

The pamphlet is geared at convincing readers that Shell is a company 
that we can trust our country with, but even a cursory look at their 
past proves the contrary. Shell has a most atrocious and downright 
criminal environmental and human rights record, especially in Africa. 
They are repeat offenders that cannot be trusted.

Not listening to the people

The flyer also claims that Shell knows that "people are concerned," 
which is why they are "involved in extensive consultations to ensure we 
listen and reflect those concerns in our exploration plans." I went to 
one of these public consultations in Cape Town. Shell was roundly 
slated, discredited and essentially booed off the stage. By all accounts 
every other consultation, especially those held in the small towns of 
the Karoo itself, went pretty much the same way. Everywhere they went to 
listen to the people, Shell was told that their fracking plans were not 
wanted. Contrary to their claims, they didn't listen to the people's 
wishes, otherwise they wouldn't be continuing to try to convince us of 
their good intentions.

Just another fossil fuel dead-end

Beyond the rather obvious public relations spin, the flyer also contains 
some more factual greenwashing. On several occasions, the Karoo's 
natural gas potential is presented as a "plentiful," "sustainable" and 
"stable, alternative energy source" that can "help secure South Africa's 
energy future" by "reducing our dependence on coal." All of which is 
rather fanciful since the extent of the potential shale gas reserves 
beneath the Karoo are entirely unknown as yet and there is no guarantee 
that any natural gas produced in the region would necessarily be made 
available to South Africans themselves. The only thing that is 
guaranteed is that Shell would stand to make very substantial financial 
profits.

The basic fact is that any shale gas from the Karoo would simply be 
another source of non-renewable fossil fuels, sure to run out sooner 
rather than later, and providing no long-term solution to either our 
current addiction to coal or our energy future. Far from reducing our 
dependence on coal, producing shale gas in the Karoo would continue to 
steer us down a fossil-fuelled dead-end and diminish our opportunities 
for exploiting the abundant, truly sustainable, clean, renewable energy 
solutions available in the region, in particular solar power.

No cleaner than coal

Finally, an actual lie. Shell's flyer describes the gas to be produced 
in the Karoo as a "more environmentally friendly" option that is "40% 
more energy efficient" and "emits 50-70% less CO2 than coal." Now while 
that may be the case for conventional natural gas, it's simply not true 
for shale gas mined by hydraulic fracturing. Shell can hardly claim to 
be ignorant of recent studies that show that over its complete 
lifecycle, fracked shale gas releases as much CO2 as coal or 
substantially more.

The flyer is little more than an underhanded attempt at presenting 
fracking in South Africa as something that it is not and its contents 
should be rejected with contempt. Let's hope that those who read it 
understand that Shell is trying to hoodwink them.

Take Action: Sign the petition to stop hydrofracking in the Karoo.

-----
Andreas is a book shop manager and freelance writer in Cape Town, South 
Africa. Follow him on Twitter: @Andreas_Spath

-- 

Todd Edelman
Green Idea Factory,
a member of the OPENbike team

Mobile: ++49(0)162 814 4081

edelman at greenidea.eu
www.greenidea.eu
todd at openbike.se
www.openbike.se

Skype: toddedelman

Urbanstr. 45
10967 Berlin
Germany

***

OPENbike - Share the Perfect Fit!