Unesco pulled into fracking debate
A group opposed to oil and gas exploration in the Okavango Basin has included Unesco and the governments of Canada and Botswana in its appeal.
ELLANIE SMIT
WINDHOEK
The Frack Free Namibia group has taken its concerns about oil and gas exploration by Reconnaissance Energy Africa (ReconAfrica) in the Kavango Region up with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco).
The Canadian company Recon Africa has come under fire for its plans to drill test wells in Namibia, close to the border with Botswana.
The group says two Unesco World Heritage Sites are located in the prospecting area.
In a letter addressed to Unesco, and the governments of Canada, Botswana and Namibia, the group requested the Namibian government to publicly state how it will protect the region's environment, people, wildlife, water resources, archaeological sites, farms and protected areas.
It points out that environmental protection is included in the Namibian constitution and that the country is also a signatory to the Paris Agreement, the Declaration on Rights of Indigenous People and the Convention on Biological Diversity.
“Despite these international obligations and commitments, the Namibian government has granted a petroleum-prospecting licence for oil and gas explorations to a Canadian-registered junior oil and gas company, Recon Africa. They bought the rights from Namibia and Botswana to drill in more than 35 000 square kilometres in the environmentally sensitive Kavango Basin.”
Protected areas
The group says the exploration sites are within the Kavango–Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA), which incorporates protected and communal land in Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
“The prospecting area in Namibia and Botswana borders three national parks, while the Okavango River and the Panhandle supplies water to the unique Okavango Delta, which is a Unesco World Heritage Site.
“The prospecting area also overlaps with several community conservancies and community forests and another Unesco World Heritage Site, Tsodilo Hills.
“It is absolutely shocking how little the Namibian public knows about this huge project and the impacts it will have. We have consulted with interested and affected parties across Kavango East and West, including those living near the drill sites. None of them, including resident San people, had been consulted.”
Dismissive
The mines ministry previously dismissed reports of fracking activities in the Kavango Region that could threaten the Okavango ecosystem.
It said the environmental clearance certificate (ECC) issued by the environment ministry to ReconAfrica is for the drilling of two stratigraphic wells for gathering data.
ReconAfrica holds a 90% interest in a petroleum exploration licence in northeast Namibia. The exploration licence covers the entire Kavango sedimentary basin, an area of approximately 25 341.33 square kilometres, and it entitles ReconAfrica to obtain a 25-year production licence if the exploration is successful.
Also, ReconAfrica holds a 100% interest in a petroleum licence in northwest Botswana which covers an area of 9 921 square kilometres and is contiguous to the Namibian licence. The two licences together comprise 35 262 square kilometres.
The company's initial goal is to establish the presence of an active petroleum system with its fully funded three-well drilling programme starting in December.
WINDHOEK
The Frack Free Namibia group has taken its concerns about oil and gas exploration by Reconnaissance Energy Africa (ReconAfrica) in the Kavango Region up with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco).
The Canadian company Recon Africa has come under fire for its plans to drill test wells in Namibia, close to the border with Botswana.
The group says two Unesco World Heritage Sites are located in the prospecting area.
In a letter addressed to Unesco, and the governments of Canada, Botswana and Namibia, the group requested the Namibian government to publicly state how it will protect the region's environment, people, wildlife, water resources, archaeological sites, farms and protected areas.
It points out that environmental protection is included in the Namibian constitution and that the country is also a signatory to the Paris Agreement, the Declaration on Rights of Indigenous People and the Convention on Biological Diversity.
“Despite these international obligations and commitments, the Namibian government has granted a petroleum-prospecting licence for oil and gas explorations to a Canadian-registered junior oil and gas company, Recon Africa. They bought the rights from Namibia and Botswana to drill in more than 35 000 square kilometres in the environmentally sensitive Kavango Basin.”
Protected areas
The group says the exploration sites are within the Kavango–Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA), which incorporates protected and communal land in Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
“The prospecting area in Namibia and Botswana borders three national parks, while the Okavango River and the Panhandle supplies water to the unique Okavango Delta, which is a Unesco World Heritage Site.
“The prospecting area also overlaps with several community conservancies and community forests and another Unesco World Heritage Site, Tsodilo Hills.
“It is absolutely shocking how little the Namibian public knows about this huge project and the impacts it will have. We have consulted with interested and affected parties across Kavango East and West, including those living near the drill sites. None of them, including resident San people, had been consulted.”
Dismissive
The mines ministry previously dismissed reports of fracking activities in the Kavango Region that could threaten the Okavango ecosystem.
It said the environmental clearance certificate (ECC) issued by the environment ministry to ReconAfrica is for the drilling of two stratigraphic wells for gathering data.
ReconAfrica holds a 90% interest in a petroleum exploration licence in northeast Namibia. The exploration licence covers the entire Kavango sedimentary basin, an area of approximately 25 341.33 square kilometres, and it entitles ReconAfrica to obtain a 25-year production licence if the exploration is successful.
Also, ReconAfrica holds a 100% interest in a petroleum licence in northwest Botswana which covers an area of 9 921 square kilometres and is contiguous to the Namibian licence. The two licences together comprise 35 262 square kilometres.
The company's initial goal is to establish the presence of an active petroleum system with its fully funded three-well drilling programme starting in December.
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