“We get fish and fruits from the river, so if this drilling pollutes the river, this is not going to benefit us—it is going to kill us.”. Spokesperson Claire Preece, however, told National Geographic the company intends to focus on oil from conventional reservoirs, which don’t require fracking. The experts pointed to the lack of physical assessments of fauna and flora and to the possible effects on local communities and other people, on archaeological sites, and on groundwater and surface water. They’ll also produce large volumes of “cuttings”—polluted rock removed from the drill hole. Terms of Use | Privacy Policy. ReconAfrica’s environmental impact assessment calls the potential significant effects of oil and gas drilling on fauna and flora in the prospecting area “negligible.” According to ReconAfrica’s Preece, “The area of interest named Kavango Basin is not situated in a sensitive area at all and all the exploration activities are highly localized.”, Rosie Woodroffe, coordinator of the African Wild Dog Working Group with the IUCN, said there are more African wild dogs around the ReconAfrica-licensed region than anywhere else in the world. A major question is whether ReconAfrica plans to frack for oil and gas, which has a history in the United States — where it is most widely used — of contaminating water and causing health issues. Does drinking water reduce side effects after a COVID-19 shot? “What will the neighboring countries do when their livelihoods are impacted because of a choice Namibia made for them?” she asked. She confirmed that the assessment didn’t include interested and affected parties and “left out key assessments and specialist studies…and has not identified alternatives” to oil and gas extraction, such as solar and wind power. It says that ReconAfrica has a permit to drill two initial test wells but that no onshore oil production license has been granted. Geochemist and ReconAfrica shareholder Daniel Jarvie estimated the basin has the potential to produce as much as 120 billion barrels of oil equivalent, which would make it one of the biggest global oil finds in recent years. What do voting restrictions and anti-protest laws have in common? Bird migration is one of nature’s great wonders. ReconAfrica’s initial goal, already approved by the Namibian government, is to drill test wells roughly one and a half miles deep in the country’s northeast starting in December 2020 to determine the presence of exploitable oil and gas. Experts cited, among other things, the lack of specialist reports pertaining to flora and fauna — for example, the impact of oil drilling on the plants that San communities use as medicine. But in its publicity materials, ReconAfrica says the development will be an economic boon for the region, and quotes one resident born and raised in Kavango, Taye Reino, attacking environmental opponents as “prophets of doom.”, “Stop with the fear mongering,” Reino is quoted as saying. Extracting and transporting oil and gas fragments habitat and cuts across animal migration routes. Angolan lawmakers revoked a ban on exploration for crude and natural gas in protected natural reserves, including the Kassanje Basin and the wildlife-rich Okavango River Basin. Why electric cars are cheaper if you’re rich. The primary Andreas Mawano Limbundi and his household knew of oil exploration of their village in northeast Namibia was as they watched a drilling website being arrange about 200 meters from their homestead late final yr. […] The Botswana portion encompasses Tsodilo Hills, a UNESCO World Heritage site that has been called the “Louvre of the desert.” More than 4,500 rock paintings there, some dating back 1,200 years, were created by the Indigenous San, who consider it a sacred place. “They focus just on the immediate step. “Our income is coming from wildlife and tourists, but if that oil industry comes, it will destroy everything,” Hamutenya said, perusing a map of the locations of the test wells. Wild animals use the entire region, which is why Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe have created the Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area, or KAZA for short. The drilling area is also the homeland of the San — otherwise known as Bushmen — a group of many tribes who have historically been victims of genocide and who lost most of their land during the colonial era. The field is bigger than Belgium, with energy news site Oilprice.com predicting it could be the “biggest oil game of the decade” if exploration continues in 2021. Will it change the flow direction?” Arkert asks. The delta is also sheltered by Ramsar, an international treaty to protect wetlands whose signatories include Namibia and Botswana. The Okavango Delta is home to some of the world’s most threatened species, including endangered African wild dogs and cheetah, white rhinoceros, black rhinoceros, and lions. ReconAfrica’s license covers the territories of no fewer than four critically endangered animals—including the black rhinoceros and the white-backed vulture—seven species described as endangered, and 20 more that are vulnerable, among them the Temminck’s pangolin and the martial eagle, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature. (ReconAfrica denies that it plans to use fracking during the exploratory phase, and the Namibian government did not respond to questions about potential fracking plans.). Some facts about ReconAfrica’s project remain murky, but important details are coming to light. Most of the delta’s water originates as seasonal rain in Angola’s forested central highlands, flows into the Okavango River, and snakes in a three-month journey across the Caprivi Strip before spreading out like a many-fingered hand in the northwestern corner of Botswana. Experts say that if large-scale oil production in a massive area north and west of the delta were to proceed, it would harm this fragile ecosystem. In a time when we know that oil is creating climate havoc worldwide, to look for oil even in proximity to the famed Okavango Delta should shame us. But it won’t be easy. He eventually said he was too busy to talk but that we could come to his office in Windhoek to review the environmental impact assessment and all supporting documentation we’d requested. The Okavango Delta, a protected wetland that provides crucial habitat for wildlife, lies about 160 miles downstream of a site in a riverbed where ReconAfrica began test drilling for oil … Oil and gas infrastructure involves “the construction of roads, pipelines, and buildings” that “could all negatively affect important animal habitat, migratory pathways, and biodiversity,” according to the World Wildlife Fund. Animal tracks signal teeming abundance in the Okavango Delta. They said that the assessment, consisting only of desktop studies without any fieldwork, is not sufficient to justify the proposed drilling. Although many of the inhabitants of the region say they do not necessarily oppose oil drilling, they are concerned that they have largely been left in the dark and will not gain financially from the oil play. The Angolan parliament has revoked a ban on exploration for crude oil and natural gas in protected areas, including the wildlife-rich Okavango Basin. The Kavango Basin, which spans northeastern Namibia and northwestern Botswana, is part of the Kalahari Desert. Namibia and Botswana share the Okavango river basin and share the Kalahari Desert, which has enormous renewable energy potential. The National Petroleum, Gas and Biofuels Agency (ANPG) is "promoting several public tenders for the continuation of work to assess the oil potential of various inland basins", with emphasis on the inland basins of Kassanje and Etosha/Okavango. This blanket permit makes it easier to build pipelines. Namibia’s Environmental Management Act stipulates that an assessment be done “in an objective manner.” Throughout the EIA, Mwiya highlights the benefits of the project, and he encouraged the government to approve it. The conservancy makes money through sustainable hunting and as a destination for wildlife-watching visitors. Oil and gas discoveries like the Eagle Ford Basin helped make the United States the largest oil and gas producer in the world, but have also created massive problems, according to … Why our coral reefs need hope, Video Story, Copyright © 1996-2015 National Geographic Society, Copyright © 2015-2021 National Geographic Partners, LLC. The regions of Kavango East and Kavango West are home to 200,000 people — including the indigenous San — making a living from farming, fishing, and tourism. A water tanker that holds 3,000 gallons would have to make 500 journeys for each well. The 2019 environmental impact assessment (EIA) commissioned by ReconAfrica was widely criticized for glossing over potential ecological problems. Yet in the “operations section” of ReconAfrica’s website, the company says it’s entitled to a 25-year production license. The Okavango river basin is still relatively pristine, but oil and gas extraction could affect groundwater levels and contaminate surface water and groundwater resources, eventually reaching the Okavango … ADVERTISEMENT This story was initially printed by Yale Setting 360 and is reproduced right here as a part of the Local weather Desk collaboration. Chimpanzee moms are like us: They mourn, dote, and take 'me' time. But the Namibian government has said that no such license has been issued, and ReconAfrica has since scrubbed any “unconventional” mentions from its literature. At present, few fences section off the Okavango wilderness, so as the waters return every year, eland scatter into surrounding areas to find good fodder, and as the antelope disperse, predators—including packs of wild dogs, prides of lions, and solitary leopards and cheetahs—follow them. ReconAfrica, a petroleum exploration company headquartered in Canada, has licensed more than 13,600 square miles of land in the two countries. “Clean water: That is the oil and the gold,” David Quammen wrote in a 2017 National Geographic magazine story documenting the Okavango Wilderness Project, an initiative supported by the nonprofit National Geographic Society in partnership with other nonprofits and the Namibian government. A network of rigs, pipelines, and roads would sprawl across an environmentally sensitive, semi-arid region that is home to Africa’s largest remaining population of savanna elephants as well as numerous threatened or endangered wildlife species. Then Bitcoin came along. National Geographic repeatedly asked Timoteus Mufeti, Namibia’s environmental commissioner, why the environmental impact assessment didn’t disclose water use by the test drilling, and to comment on problems the drilling could cause for local people and the environment. “None of this has been laid out in the EIA.”, Arkert said the pits to store drilling mud and water described in the assessment are so big that ReconAfrica’s plans for its test wells already may include fracking and may not have been fully disclosed to the Namibian government. The Okavango river basin is still relatively pristine, but oil and gas extraction could affect groundwater levels and contaminate surface water and groundwater resources, eventually reaching the Okavango … © 1999-2021 Grist Magazine, Inc. All rights reserved. ReconAfrica has compared the geological conditions in the Kavango to the Karoo Basin in South Africa — an area where fracking has begun for natural gas — and the company seems confident it has found a major petroleum play. The public wants to know what the likely consequences would be of an oil find and the impacts to the Kavango regions and to the Okavango Basin. Also, ReconAfrica holds a 100% interest in a petroleum licence, northwest Botswana which comprises an area of approximately 8,990 sq km (2.2 million acres) and … Seen from space, fingers of green define Botswana's Okavango Delta. As part of our commitment to sustainability, in 2021 Grist moved its office headquarters to the Bullitt Center in Seattle’s vibrant Capitol Hill neighborhood. In addition, the drilling — which may involve hydraulic fracturing, or fracking — also would encompass or border national parks and wildlife conservancies, and could threaten waterways that local communities rely on and that eventually flow into the renowned Okavango Delta, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. ReconAfrica refuses to discuss this.”. Neither Namibia’s mining nor environment ministries responded to questions about ReconAfrica’s long-term plans. Bigger than Italy, it’s the largest conservation area on the continent. The possibility of earthquakes from fracking is a serious concern to Turton. Located in the Okavango wilderness region of Namibia and Botswana, the massive Kavango Basin is thought to hold more than 30 billion barrels of crude oil. Multiple statements by ReconAfrica officials, as well as technical studies such as the company’s May 2020 Kavango Basin Research Report and investor presentations, reinforce the probability that exploration would involve fracking. Oil and gas discoveries like the Eagle Ford Basin helped make the United States the largest oil and gas producer in the world, but have also created massive problems, according to … Although ReconAfrica’s license area includes several wildlife conservancies, the first Muyemburuko heard of the development was last November. Botswana Gazette February 26, 2021 Minister downplays impact on fragile ecosystemBotswana has licensed Canadian company to prospect on its side of the Okavango Basin Oscar Nkala The Angolan parliament has revoked a ban on exploration for crude oil and natural gas in protected areas, including the wildlife-rich Okavango Basin. This story was originally published by Yale Environment 360 and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration. “What will happen when our water gets contaminated?” wondered Ina-Maria Shikongo, the main coordinator of the Namibian chapter of Fridays for Future, a global climate youth movement inspired by the Swedish activist Greta Thunberg. For Shikongo, it’s not a question of whether water will be fouled, but when. The Colorado Plateau is breathtaking—but stepping off trail for a killer photo can be deadly for biocrust. Photograph by Frans Lanting/MINT Images / Science Source. Grist is a nonprofit, independent, media organization dedicated to telling stories of climate, justice, and solutions. But Muyemburuko said at least one community member he met was enthusiastic about jobs that might be created and the prospect of greater prosperity in the Kavango region. Designated Play of the Year by oil and gas … Jacklin and Arkert, two of the independent experts who reviewed the environmental impact assessment for National Geographic, said details about water needs for the test wells, which should be addressed, are neglected in the EIA. Botswana is home to the continent’s largest remaining herds of African elephants. Scot Evans, ReconAfrica’s CEO, is a former Halliburton vice president with decades of technical and operational experience fracking shale oil in the U.S., and Nick Steinsberger, the senior vice president for drilling and completions, is often referred to as one of the fathers of fracking for his promotion of the use of high-pressure water mixed with chemicals to crack open the rocks. With six other San leaders, Beckett walked more than 300 miles in February from the South African town of Knysna to Cape Town, to present the Namibian diplomatic mission with a petition opposing drilling in the Kavango Basin. The first Andreas Mawano Limbundi and his family knew of oil exploration in their village in northeast Namibia was as they watched a drilling site being set up about 200 meters from their homestead late last year. Angola Revokes Law Banning Oil Exploration in Okavango Basin Candido Mendes 2/19/2021 US Coronavirus: Increased traveling and spring … The possibility of oil drilling and what it would do to the region has filled many local people living and working in and around the Kavango Basin and Okavango Delta with utter horror. That includes the volumes of water needed, the number of boreholes, where the water will be taken from the Omatako, how the extraction of water could affect nearby water wells or surrounding communities, and the disposal and treatment of wastewater from drilling. ReconAfrica refuses to discuss this.” Previously, ReconAfrica CEO Scot Evans and the company have discussed unconventional drilling opportunities — a term often used to refer to fracking — in the Kavango. National Geographic asked three independent experts to evaluate ReconAfrica’s environmental impact assessment (EIA) for its operations in Namibia. All rights reserved. All donations made between now and May 31 will be matched. “We can sit down with Exxon, Total, et cetera, because this is a majors-sized play,” said Craig Steinke, ReconAfrica’s founder and largest shareholder, in a July 13 interview. The lack of job opportunities in the region is one of ReconAfrica’s key arguments for its project. After the exploration stage, the development would likely involve building hundreds of wells, pipelines, and pumping stations, all linked by access roads. Okavango Delta under threat from oil, gas exploration Water is a scarce and precious commodity in Namibia, the driest country south of the Sahara, say … Their village — 90 minutes along a potholed dirt road from the town of Rundu on the Namibia-Angola border — was peaceful, with the sounds of birdsong and the wind rustling the tree leaves. According to a 2019 investor presentation obtained by National Geographic, the company’s goal is to drill hundreds of wells under a 25-year production license. Whatever ReconAfrica’s intentions, its test wells will require large quantities of water. The company has a license for an area of 9,800 square miles, plus an adjacent area in neighboring Botswana — 13,250 square miles in total. Meanwhile, approval for a drilling permit in the licensed area in Botswana is under way. Even many who live in the affected region were unaware. Neighboring shale plays give analysts even more confidence there's sizable oil supply. This power plant stopped burning fossil fuels. Prospecting will be allowed in 5% of protected zones and “possibly” only 3% will be drilled, Mineral Resources Minister Diamantino Azevedo said. The Kavango Basin, as the area is known to geologists, is larger than the country of Belgium, and ReconAfrica says it could hold up to 31 billion barrels of crude oil… Brimming with wild animals and plants, the delta “is what the term ‘biodiversity hot spot’ was coined for,” says Marion Hammerl, president of the Global Nature Fund. ReconAfrica’s prospecting and exploration license in Botswana also encompasses the Tsodilo Hills, a World Heritage site that UNESCO has called the “Louvre of the desert”—a repository for more than 4,500 rock paintings, some dating back 1,200 years, created by the Indigenous San. Design and build by Upstatement. ReconAfrica’s assessment says the source for the water will be the Omatako River, which flows underground most of the time. Botswana’s environment ministry did not respond to questions either. The rig belongs to ReconAfrica, an oil and gas company headquartered in Canada, currently drilling three test wells in the sedimentary Kavango Basin of Namibia. Though some local traditional leaders say they were consulted, that information often did not filter down to other community leaders or into many Kavango communities. After examining ReconAfrica’s September 2019 investor proposal describing drilling, possible fracking, and the digging of hundreds of wells in the area, she said that “either the Namibian government didn’t read the fine print or it is in denial as to what it signed off on.”. This approximately 7,000-square-mile wetland lies east and southeast of ReconAfrica’s licensed area. The Angolan parliament has revoked a ban on exploration for crude oil and natural gas in protected areas, including the wildlife-rich Okavango Basin. Beyond short-term opportunities, the residents of Kavango worry about the state in which ReconAfrica will leave the region. The possibility of oil drilling and what it would do to the region has filled many local people living and working in and around the Kavango Basin and Okavango Delta with utter horror. Photograph by BEVERLY JOUBERT, Nat Geo Image Collection, Photograph by George Osodi/Bloomberg via Getty Images. In response to questions from National Geographic about potential harm from drilling, ReconAfrica’s spokesperson Claire Preece said, “ReconAfrica will ensure that there is no environmental impact from these wells. ReconAfrica spokesperson Claire Preece noted that “fracking is an oil or gas production method in unconventional reservoirs” in her October 21 reply to questions from National Geographic. Migration routes extend beyond the delta across a mostly unfenced landscape. “There are many questions to be answered.”.
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