Activists board oil rig at sea
Kiwi among Greenpeace members on Polar Pioneer to protest Shell’s plan to drill in Arctic
An Auckland Greenpeace activist who boarded an oil rig in the middle of the Pacific Ocean yesterday said he was determined to stay there to protest against Shell’s plan to drill for oil in the Arctic.
Johno Smith scaled the 38,000 tonne Arctic-bound oil rig around 7am Honolulu time with five other Greenpeace climbers.
Speaking via satellite phone last night on board the Polar Pioneer — 1158km northwest of Hawaii — he said he planned to be there “for the long haul”.
“We can stay up here for as long as possible to get a message through to Shell and make more people aware of what is currently happening.
“They’ve decided to go and start drilling for oil in the Arctic and we believe that it is one of the most pristine, and one of the last pristine spots in the world and it can’t afford to have an oil spill.”
The 32-year-old said that, apart from cold weather, he and the other climbers were coping well.
The multinational team had set up camp on the underside of the main deck and had enough supplies to last several days.
Smith said they also had the potential to resupply.
The Polar Pioneer was one of two drilling vessels heading towards the Arctic for Shell this year — according to Greenpeace — and is being transported on a 217m heavy-lift vessel called Blue Marlin.
The Greenpeace ship Esperanza followed the rig for 5000 nautical miles after it left Brunei Bay in
Johno Smith with (inset) Miriam Friedrich and Zoe Lennox on board the Polar Pioneer oil platform. Malaysia. The Esperanza is stationed about one nautical mile from the rig.
Smith, who works as a contract climber, started volunteering with Greenpeace two years ago but said this was his first time climbing aboard a ship.
“I decided I had to take a stand because I don’t think Shell have the right to go into the Arctic and cause the potential damage that may hap- pen up there,” he said.
Shell’s drilling lease for the Chukchi Sea in the Alaskan Arctic was approved last week in the United States.
Shell spokeswoman Kayla Macke confirmed protesters had “illegally boarded the Polar Pioneer, under contract to Shell, jeopardising not only the safety of the crew on board, but the protesters themselves”.
She added: “Shell has met with organisations and individuals who oppose energy exploration offshore Alaska. We respect their views and value the dialogue. We will not, however, condone the illegal tactics employed by Greenpeace. Nor will we allow these stunts to distract from preparations under way to execute a safe and responsible exploration programme.”