Taranaki Energy Watch (TEW) is a grass roots community-based group based in Taranaki. Sarah Roberts is the spokesperson for TEW on oil and gas activities including fracking. She has been actively involved in raising public awareness for several years on issues relating to oil and gas in Taranaki and New Zealand. This FB page has been set up to provide information on the national, regional and district regulations in Taranaki specifically for oil and gas and peoples' rights. There are a number of serious concerns including seismic surveys using explosives or thumper trucks; drilling, fracking and production facilities too close to our homes and properties; and disposing of the drilling waste. TEW won a significant Environment Court case in 2020 on oil and gas rules in the South Taranaki District plan and plan to use the case law to establish the same across Taranaki. These include new rules on the use of explosives and reporting misfires in seismic surveys; new rules on separation distances between our homes and the oil and gas industry; new rules on no more fatality risk from the oil and gas companies over other people's properties; and prohibiting oil and gas activities in residential areas. The Labour-led government said that the climate emergency was our nuclear free moment. There is a ban on new permits offshore and no permits onshore outside of Taranaki however the government has chosen to allow continuing onshore oil and gas exploration in Taranaki beside our homes and in our community. Block Offer 2019 comprised a total acreage of 2,451 km² restricted to the onshore Taranaki region with an announcement prior to July 2021. The proposed blocks for consultation for Block Offer 2020 cover 2630 km². There is currently approximately 300 km² of planned onshore seismic surveys looking for more oil and gas. A further 24 wells are planned at 2 local well sites- the biggest well sites so far in Taranaki. It is time to plan for the future not the past.
