Vol. 4, No. 1 Contents
Headline Back Issues
Winter 1999
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Canada extends petroleum moratorium on Georges BankBy Suzy Fried, Editor Ottawa, Ontario - Officials have extended a moratorium on petroleum exploration and drilling on the Canadian portion of Georges Bank through 2012 to safeguard fisheries there. "Georges Bank is one of the most productive fishing grounds in the world, and the governments want to ensure that drilling would not negatively impact them," stated a December announcement by Ralph Goodale, Minister of Natural Resources Canada, and Gordon Balser, Minister in charge of the Nova Scotia Petroleum Directorate. The two ministers were responsible for deciding whether to continue the Canadian moratorium, which would have expired on January 1, 2000.
Canada and the US share jurisdiction over Georges Bank, a traditional fishing ground for scallops, lobster, cod, haddock, and other fin fish, which marks the southern gateway to the Gulf of Maine. Approximately one sixth of the Bank lies on the Canadian side of the border. In 1998 the US extended its own Georges Bank drilling moratorium until 2012. Canada's ban took effect in 1988, under the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Resources Accord Implemen-tation Acts. The Georges Bank Review Panel, convened under the Acts to conduct a public review of the environmental and socioeconomic impacts of exploration and drilling on the Bank, recommended last summer that the ministers extend the moratorium. "Our decision to extend the exploration moratorium on Georges Bank was based on the Panel's extensive public consultations, its review, and its final recommendation," said Goodale. The recommendation was included in a report that described the exceptional ecological value of Georges Bank, and the value of its fishery, and cited evidence that exploratory activities could affect fish and other marine species. It followed a series of information sessions, community workshops, and public hearings that the panel held in Yarmouth, Shelburne, Lunenburg, and Halifax, Nova Scotia. The panel also accepted written comments. The Gulf of Maine Council offered another opportunity for people to discuss the issue at a November 1998 forum in Halifax. Opponents of petroleum exploration and drilling on Georges Bank said that the ban is necessary to protect the Bank from oil spills and other environmental damage. NORIGS 2000, a Canadian coalition of fishery, environmental, and community representatives, said seismic surveys that petroleum companies undertake to look for hydrocarbons under the sea - which involve setting off loud sounds and recording their echoes - would disrupt the spawning activity of fish on the Bank. Drilling could also cause numerous environmental problems including suffocating organisms living on the ocean floor, the group asserted. NORIGS also expressed worries about pipeline leaks and ruptures, accidental spills of solvents, and conflicts between exploration supply vessels and fishing boats. US organizations also opposed petroleum exploration and development on Georges Bank. The Massachusetts Fishermen's Partnership described the decision to extend the moratorium as an "unqualified victory for fishermen, scientists, and environmentalists in Canada and America." The Canada/Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Board, an independent government regulatory agency, pointed out that even if the moratorium had been allowed to expire, licensing processes, environmental assessments, and public information meetings would have to take place before exploration, drilling, or production could begin on Georges Bank. Extending the moratorium has not settled the issue forever, indicated Balser, Nova Scotia's Petroleum Directorate Minister. "Now we have to come together to improve understanding between the fishery and the petroleum sectors, which both offer so much promise for the future," he said. |
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