2. METIRIA TUREI (Co-Leader—Green) Link to this
to the Minister of Energy and Resources
What emergency response, safety, and environmental protection provisions, if any, were included in the permit granted to Anadarko Petroleum Corporation to undertake deep-water oil exploration and drilling in the Canterbury Basin?
Hon HEKIA PARATA (Acting Minister of Energy and Resources) Link to this
Tēnā koe, Mr Speaker. Under the permit granted to Anadarko, it may drill one exploratory well. Before it does so, however, it must develop a discharge management plan that must be approved by the director of Maritime New Zealand.
Who will have responsibility for containment and clean-up if there is a catastrophic oil leak in the exploratory well that Anadarko plans to drill in waters 1,500 metres deep off the Canterbury coast?
Will the Government require a substantial bond from Anadarko as an insurance against the possibility of a catastrophic oil leak, which would cost New Zealand taxpayers billions of dollars to clean up?
If Anadarko is to drill an exploratory well, it must provide a discharge management plan to Maritime New Zealand. That is the process the Government observes.
I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. My question was not about a discharge permit; it was specific and clear: will the Government require a substantial bond to cover the financial liability?
Mr SPEAKERI think the member raises a fair point. It was a straight question, and I think it does deserve an answer as to whether the Government would require a bond. It may not be appropriate to answer the question, but it was a straight question.
Under the process of the stage that Anadarko is at, if Anadarko is to drill an exploratory well, it must prepare a discharge management plan. The plan does not include a bond.
What guarantee can the Minister give to New Zealanders that they will not have to foot the bill of a catastrophic leak, given that Anadarko is currently contesting financial liability for the 80-day leak in the Gulf of Mexico?
A number of containment strategies are overseen by Maritime New Zealand, and I have rehearsed in the House the maritime pollution strategy that applies in this area.
What difference is there between the exploratory well in the Gulf of Mexico at 1,500 metres deep and the proposed exploratory well in the Canterbury Basin at 1,500 metres deep that gives the Government confidence that a similar catastrophic leak could be quickly contained?
Te Ururoa Flavell Link to this
Tēnā koe, Mr Speaker. Is the Minister supportive of the Māori Party’s member’s bill to ensure meaningful and effective consultation and ongoing engagement with whānau, hapū, and iwi from any person or groups seeking a permit under the Crown Minerals Act; if not, what is the nature of the consultation and ongoing engagement that is taking place between the Anadarko Petroleum Corporation and Ngāi Tahu in the Canterbury Basin?
I am absolutely committed to meaningful engagement, and I do not think legislation is required for that. As to the second part of the question, the member would need to ask the parties involved.
Given the Minister’s confidence in the Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, what is her response to its statement in its 2010 annual report that it may be difficult for it to quickly or effectively execute any contingency plans related to future events similar to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill?
I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. The question was about her responsibility as a Minister to provide certainty or assurance to New Zealanders about what might happen, or a contingency plan, if there is an oil spill. I think it is within her responsibility to give a more reasonable response than that one.
The problem was that the member’s question went on further than that and talked about, I believe, the corporation’s annual report, or a similar document. The Minister focused on that part of the question in her answer. If the member had asked just the first part of the question, then we might have been able to pin down the Minister more.
I seek leave to table page 30 of the 2010 annual report of the Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, which states that it would be difficult for it to quickly or effectively execute any contingency plans related to events similar to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.