Monday 13 April 2015

Keep It In The Ground? - you can stick that ...

At the first mention of possibly significant oil reserves in the Weald - and not even shale oil, no fracking involved - out come the 'Keep-It-In-The-Grounders'.

What's all this then?  Well, outgoing Grauniad editor Alan Rusbridger, stricken with guilt that he hasn't used his organ more extensively for campaining, has decided to go hell-for-leather for green activism in the run-up to Paris, under the comfortingly simplistic Keep-It-In-The-Ground banner.

This stuff makes me smile.
The discovery of massive oil reserves in south-east England represents a threat, not a bonanza ... the UK’s Climate Change Act commits us to regarding all shares and financial products dependent for their value on fossil resources as unusable “stranded assets”. 
I think not, whatever silliness Mark Carney may indulge in from time to time: although there could (I suppose) eventually be enough of a movement against institutional investing in oil & gas shares to improve the yield for those who see matters a bit more clearly; stranger things have happened.

In the meantime Molly Scott Cato, "professor of green economics at Roehampton University and the Green party's finance speaker", author of the above twaddle, may care to visit the lovely county of Dorset.  There she will find - or rather, she probably won't find because it is essentially invisible - Europe's largest onshore oilfield, Wytch Farm.  Cleverly developed by BP (now owned & operated by Perenco), it is a model of sensitive oil production.  Few Wealden landowners would have any qualms about another of those.

If it's there, it'll not long be kept in the ground.

ND

12 comments:

John in Cheshire said...

The likes of Mr Rusbridger and milly molly mandy used to be referred to as Luddites and it seems appropriate to resurrect if for today's immature followers of Chicken Little. I wonder when the children will be put back in the creche and the adults get back control of things? I suppose that greenpieces will also be mouthing off about it; they've probably got some time on their hands now they've vacated the Shell rig bound for the Artic, so, no doubt they'll perform one of their brave spectacular demonstrations; of course against a body they know won't actually do them some harm to stop their troublemaking.

Blue Eyes said...

The new Gatwick hub airport/industrial complex could be pretty much self-sufficient. Rather like Dubai, for example.

Blue Eyes said...

Crawley as the next Houston?

Bill Quango MP said...

I drove past that oilfield every week, for about 3 years , without ever noticing it.
Its a complete marvel and should be used more when people imagine they are having to have oil wells in their conservatory.

Same with Eurotunnel.

When the line was dug right through Kent , up past Canterbury,into London .. The damage looked extensive and the environmental effects would be long term.

Today there is no trace of that project at all.

Sebastian Weetabix said...

I hope the silly bastards succeed with their ridiculous disinvest campaign. I will hoover up the lovely cheap oil shares and enjoy the divvis into my decrepitude.

We do seem to have moved into a post-factual world, where truthiness is more important than actual reality. It's going to be great fun when reality bites.

Blue Eyes said...

Also, is Rusbridger's editorial epitaph: "we weren't enough of a viewspaper"?

dearieme said...

is Rusbridger's editorial epitaph: "we weren't enough of a views paper"? Nah, it's more of "Good riddance, you crooked cnut".

Blue Eyes said...

"It is as an *economist* that I bring you a party-political broadcast on behalf of the bullshit-bullshit-waffle party".

Sackerson said...

So, Rusbridger is all gas and no flair?

Suffragent said...

Precisely BE
As an Economist, who played no small part in the train wreck, of the last financial crash, but didn’t see it coming, I intend to play a large part in the next crash, so I have better chance of its prediction.

Yours sincerely Smuggle Arsemouth

Economist, putting the mist in the economy

dearieme said...

"Economist, putting the mist in the economy" A bilingual joke. Well done.

Anonymous said...

I know John
Greenpeace, what a bunch of w@nkers, what have the welsh ever done for us.