Activists climb on to oil platforms

Protesters have climbed on to two North Sea oil platforms to campaign against leaving parts of the old rigs in the sea.

Greenpeace International said activists from the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark had boarded Shell’s Brent Alpha and Bravo platforms yesterday as part of a protest against plans by the company to leave parts of old structures in the North Sea.

The climbers scaled the platforms, which are no longer operational and lie north-east of the Shetland Islands, and hung banners saying, “Shell, clean up your mess!” and “Stop Ocean Pollution”, the group added.

It said that Shell’s decommissioning plans will leave parts of four Brent oil platforms at sea with a total of around 640,000 cubic metres of oily water and 40,000 cubic metres of oily sediment containing more than 11,000 tonnes of oil.

Campaigner Dr Christian Bussau said: “Shell’s plans are a scandal and go against international agreements to protect the environment.

“With escalating climate emergency, biodiversity loss and species extinction, we need healthy oceans more than ever.

“Abandoning thousands of tonnes of oil in ageing concrete will sooner or later pollute the sea.”

Greenpeace International said although a ban on dumping installations and platforms in the North East Atlantic ocean was agreed in 1998 Shell requested an exemption from the UK Government. It called for governments to protect the ocean and “not cave in to corporate pressure”.

A Shell spokesman said the company had spent 10 years conducting research into decommissioning the platforms. He added: “Our proposals were submitted only when we were convinced they were the best option: safe, environmentally sound, technically achievable, and socially responsible.”