Environment Minister David Benson-Pope said today that the Ministry for the Environment and Maritime New Zealand, together with the Petroleum Exploration and Production Association of New Zealand, had recently completed best practice environmental guidelines for offshore petroleum activities within the EEZ.
“We want to protect the marine environment but allow for responsible exploration of New Zealand’s petroleum resources at the same time. These voluntary guidelines are a first step to protecting this remote territory,” said Benson-Pope.
At present, petroleum explorers working within the EEZ – which extends from 12 to 200 nautical miles offshore – do not have to assess and manage environmental effects as comprehensively as they would under the Resource Management Act that governs onshore and near-shore activities.
Benson-Pope said the government was working on an Oceans Policy that would address this situation, but until then the agreed voluntary guidelines provided offshore petroleum companies with environmental best practice.
PEPANZ executive officer Mike Patrick said the organisation had played a major role in formulating the guidelines and fully supported them.
“Our members always want to minimise the environmental impacts of their work and we are keen to play a further role in the oceans policy that government is now working on,” Patrick said.
PEPANZ was also waiting for the introduction of the Marine Protection Rule 200, which would set standards for the discharge of pollutants from petroleum production installations, Patrick said.
Meanwhile, the New Zealand Government’s bid to expand the EEZ is expected to go before the United Nations this week.
The 2500-page Law of the Sea submission, covering potentially mineral-rich seabed reserves, outlines scientific evidence defining New Zealand’s underwater continental shelf according to UN guidelines.
It calls for a 1.7 million square kilometre expansion of the EEZ. At present, New Zealand’s exclusive seabed rights cover about 4Msq.km.
The project involved combining existing knowledge with extensive surveying to determine the shape and geological makeup of New Zealand’s distinctive continental shelf.
If the UN accepts New Zealand’s bid, it will give the country sovereign rights to any petroleum and mineral resources on or under the extended seabed territory, potentially worth many billions of dollars, particularly in today’s crude oil price environment of $US70-plus per barrel.
New Zealand will be the fifth country, following Russia, Brazil, Australia and Ireland, to present its Law of the Sea submission to the UN, which is pushing for recognition of continental shelf boundaries.
A Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade official said UN scrutiny of the submission could take up to two years.
