O.I.L.

I have been meaning to write this post for ages, seriously. Before I decided to sprint for President of Ousa (and I'm rather bad at short bursts- I have more endurance) I was going to write an article for Critic. I could still write it someday. I ended up failing to write the article, however in the process I learnt a very important lesson. I wanted to write about O.I.L. It's a big word and we all know what it means and its implications. I've been thinking of an acronym: Oligarchic Investments Ltd.? Oops, Includes Leaks?

The government is interested in oil exploration, coal extraction and maybe one day sawing off half the alps- the Denniston Plateau is step 1 of the process (Help stop it!). The process of extraction in large parts of the country, including Canterbury, is a fracking lot! Fracking, aka hydraulic fracturing, is a method of extraction that practically bombs the oil or gas out of the ground with a jutting mix of water and chemicals. Add to that tastiness, the methane or black debris that it is known to contaminate the water supplies and explode houses- You should check out the documentary Gasland.

Due to this, and that fracking causes earthquakes- as have happened in Lancashire and Oklahoma- I was going to write an article concerning oil drilling off the coast here. I talked to activists, Maori friends from Kai Tahu, a DCC councilor and an energy studies academic. The way I saw it, the DCC had no power, and this was confirmed to me (I have the interview if you want). It was a central government decision, so the only way to stop it was through Kai Tahu central. Why? Well Kai Tahu is one of the Iwi with most mana in the country, with a massive influence. Its decision could be detrimental to governmental policy as it would enpower activist groups, smaller Iwi and foremost have a massive media coverage. It was confirmed to/by Radio New Zealand that the Iwi takes each decision case by case, however they feign concern. When I tried to contact them, on a regular basis for a month, I got no response. The Maori friends I talked to only wanted to be anonymous, as they didn't want to be seen as making a judgement before the board did. These friends of mine gave me details about meetings, and they told me they disagree with the profit-oriented leadership of the Iwi. However as I failed to get the higher echelons of Kai Tahu on tape, I decided I couldn't make the article. This was a failure. Now I realise that the fact that the Iwi didn't talk, that it's members feel slightly disenfrachised and that they disagreed should have made it to the news in  itself.

Today the surveying ship arrives in Otago, in fact it's here below our noses. It's a shame I am leaving to Auckland in about half an hour. However I will get to see Oil on Canvas, made by Greenpeace from Rena disaster crude.