Petition to stop fracking for oil in the Kavango region

[spike.t]

Hey everyone - please share the kavango anti fracking petition with your networks: https://www.rainforest-rescue.org/p...oil-industry-out-of-africas-natural-treasures it has gotten 20k more signatures in the last three days but needs much more -

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

Why would anyone be anti-fracking? What is the specific issue that people are against?

 

[TheWhitetailNut]

Why would anyone be anti-fracking? What is the specific issue that people are against?

As for myself, I'd like there to be someplace on earth that is still wild.

 

[Pheroze]

Why would anyone be anti-fracking? What is the specific issue that people are against?

I believe the issue is the location.

 

[Pheroze]

Some interesting articles on the company website. https://reconafrica.com/media/

Can someone clarify where these oil fields will be in the general scheme of things? Is this a small piece of the area, or smack in the Middle?

 

[Pheroze]

 

[WAB]

Perhaps being Africa the outcome will be different. However, in Alaska we developed oil production in a pristine wilderness area in a very responsible manner. Environmental impact has been minimized and wildlife is thriving. In fact, the porcupine caribou herd is doing as well as any in the state.

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

ReconAfrica under fire over Namibia drill plans

Reconnaissance Energy Africa has come under fire in the Southern African press over its plans for drilling in Namibia, close to the border with Botswana.

www.energyvoice.com

 

[Tubby’s Canteen]

Are the companies going to employ any locals and treat them fairly? What is the environmental impact expected? There are a lot of questions I would need answered before I’d feel comfortable criticizing industry in a rural poor area.

 

[Tubby’s Canteen]

You probably could get a consultant job @WAB and hunt on your down time. That would be a sweet set up.

 

[WAB]

Talk about a dream assignment!

 

[wesheltonj]

Why would anyone be anti-fracking? What is the specific issue that people are against?

I suspect most folks have no idea what fracking is. Or realize that the O&G industry was been fracking wells since the 1950's. But where are they going to get the water from? That's another story.

There stock is 1.50ish a share. 6 months ago it was .50.

 

[John J]

I suspect most folks have no idea what fracking is. Or realize that the O&G industry was been fracking wells since the 1950's. But where they are going to get the water from is another story.

I'm sure that's the case. Frac creates or improves the flow of oil. What energy company wants to have a spill or event that puts it in the public eye for scrutiny? Especially the uneducated public who thinks this process is destroying or doing some hocus pocus in the earth. Every time a frac shows up in the news they show a drill rig, and call it a frac rig. We pump sand in the ground. Thats about it. The chemicals used are to reduce pressures and kill bacteria in the water, because we are pumping into a sterile environment. Everything is monitored, everything we use is available for public knowledge. Frac is just another political football for liberals who want to change and increase the cost of our way of living.

 

[375Fox]

Are the companies going to employ any locals and treat them fairly? What is the environmental impact expected? There are a lot of questions I would need answered before I’d feel comfortable criticizing industry in a rural poor area.

Just to try and answer your question on employing locals. A project like this would give a lot of locals employment driving trucks, laborers to build pads, security, etc, but all the drilling, fracing, and other technical activities would most likely be an expat workforce for quite a while. It takes knowledge to do these jobs and also takes time to recognize people that have the ambition and you can actually trust in these positions for a high risk activity. It’s also uncertain if these projects will be successful from start or how long they will last. Very rarely will you find an all local workforce in oil and gas even in the USA or Canada. I’d definitely trust a Canadian company though to try and develop a local workforce over a Chinese company.

 

[spike.t]

Just to try and answer your question on employing locals. A project like this would give a lot of locals employment driving trucks, laborers to build pads, security, etc, but all the drilling, fracing, and other technical activities would most likely be an expat workforce for quite a while. It takes knowledge to do these jobs and also takes time to recognize people that have the ambition and you can actually trust in these positions for a high risk activity. It’s also uncertain if these projects will be successful from start or how long they will last. Very rarely will you find an all local workforce in oil and gas even in the USA or Canada. I’d definitely trust a Canadian company though to try and develop a local workforce over a Chinese company.

You just quoted the problem...lots of people moving into a wilderness area....in africa this equals poaching and destruction .....I knew this would bring out the oil people...and I knew they would be defending it....but to put it bluntly I would hate to see anything like it there....

 

[375Fox]

You just quoted the problem...lots of people moving into a wilderness area....in africa this equals poaching and destruction .....I knew this would bring out the oil people...and I knew they would be defending it....but to put it bluntly I would hate to see anything like it there....

I’m conflicted because I’d like to see areas stay free from development. When I hunted Zambia in 2006 they were drilling bore holes for copper in the area, when my dad and brother went back several years later there was sadly a Chinese copper mine in area and the trail between camps along the park boundary was now a major highway. They shot several animals for snares sadly that we didn’t see before in 2006. We’ve been told it’s no longer operating thankfully.
However, as soon as I see the words petition against fracking, I know who stated it. A petition against oil exploration would get more support from everyone. That word fracking has been expanded to everything they don’t understand for the media to make people scared. To someone knowledgeable, casing and cement designs should be much more concerning than the fracing process. The good thing is at $40 oil new major projects aren’t going to happen, so I would think this area is safe.

 

[spike.t]

I’m conflicted because I’d like to see areas stay free from development. When I hunted Zambia in 2006 they were drilling bore holes for copper in the area, when my dad and brother went back several years later there was sadly a Chinese copper mine in area and the trail between camps along the park boundary was now a major highway. They shot several animals for snares sadly that we didn’t see before in 2006. We’ve been told it’s no longer operating thankfully.
However, as soon as I see the words petition against fracking, I know who stated it. A petition against oil exploration would get more support from everyone. That word fracking has been expanded to everything they don’t understand for the media to make people scared. To someone knowledgeable, casing and cement designs should be much more concerning than the fracing process. The good thing is at $40 oil new major projects aren’t going to happen, so I would think this area is safe.

The problem in african countries is that as soon as you put decent roads etc into an area,..which they would I presume have to ....you very very soon have an influx of people who will be looking for any opportunity to utilise anything to make money...or start farming....have seen it so often....trees go for charcoal...animals poached out....its not the same as a controlled theoretically law abiding environment like in usa or Canada ...any of these big developments in these countries in wilderness areas leads to ....destruction.....and there are quite a few ongoing that you people have not much idea about....but over the next 5 to 10 years will impact massively on areas that at the moment are wild and relatively unspoilt...small town and villages that's it....but not for that long....the batoka gorge dam is going ahead....studies on feasibility of dam lower on the luangwa....infrastructure to build a tri link bridge linking feira...kanyemba and zumbo on lower zambezi is in progress....(thats zim..zambia and moz)so the lower luangwa corridor will be affected which is important migratory/passage for wildlife....you want to see these areas dont leave it too long.....

 

[Scott CWO]

Mike, I believe a better stated position would be being against exploration and the development it brings in a wild area. I get that.

My son is a Petroleum Engineer for EXXON MOBIL. Among other things, he designs frac jobs. Fracking is misunderstood. It increases production and reduces the need for more wells. Fracking combined with directional drilling (multiple wells drilled from one pad) greatly reduces the number of pads and well head locations in a given surface area. This is much better than the older methods that impact more real estate area.

 

[John Sharp]

I’m deeply saddened to read so many of these replies. It appears that most of you see only money in oil, when we in Africa see the destruction of our wildlife habitat. We’re talking about the Okavango Delta in Botswana here, one of the truly unspoiled ecosystems in Southern Africa.
Please understand that nothing in Africa is done to USA standards, so none of this will be ‘clean’. It will most likely severely pollute the delta and cause untold damage to this fragile ecosystem.
We live here, we know how things work here, and this will be a death knell for the Okavango and the wildlife, plus our futures in this industry.
It’s hard enough fighting poachers and governments in Africa. It all boils down to two options: oil or wildlife.

 

[Pheroze]

The problem in african countries is that as soon as you put decent roads etc into an area,..which they would I presume have to ....you very very soon have an influx of people who will be looking for any opportunity to utilise anything to make money...or start farming....have seen it so often....trees go for charcoal...animals poached out....its not the same as a controlled theoretically law abiding environment like in usa or Canada ...any of these big developments in these countries in wilderness areas leads to ....destruction.....and there are quite a few ongoing that you people have not much idea about....but over the next 5 to 10 years will impact massively on areas that at the moment are wild and relatively unspoilt...small town and villages that's it....but not for that long....the batoka gorge dam is going ahead....studies on feasibility of dam lower on the luangwa....infrastructure to build a tri link bridge linking feira...kanyemba and zumbo on lower zambezi is in progress....(thats zim..zambia and moz)so the lower luangwa corridor will be affected which is important migratory/passage for wildlife....you want to see these areas dont leave it too long.....

Would the governments of Namibia and Botswana do a better job of controlling the collateral damage you mention? I thought the Namibian government was quite good at that sort of thing?