Offshore petroleum and minerals: Plugging gaps in the present framework

Barton, Barry

Offshore petroleum and minerals: Plugging gaps in the present framework

dc.contributor.author	Barton, Barry	en_NZ
dc.date.accessioned	2015-08-31T20:54:06Z
dc.date.available	2011	en_NZ
dc.date.available	2015-08-31T20:54:06Z
dc.date.issued	2011	en_NZ
dc.description.abstract	For twenty years, it has been realized that there is a gap in New Zealand’s environmental law in that there is no general environmental legislation for the exclusive economic zone, and now for the extended continental shelf that includes areas more than 200 nautical miles offshore. The jurisdiction of regional councils under the Resource Management Act 1991 does not extend beyond the 12-mile limit, about 22 km offshore. (The jurisdiction of territorial authorities extends only to the mean low water mark.) That has meant that oil and gas operations beyond the 12-mile limit have not had proper environmental scrutiny. Public concern about such matters has sharpened in the light of petroleum exploration in the Raukumara Basin off the East Cape, although so far it has only reached the stage of seismic exploration. The Deepwater Horizon blowout on the Macondo prospect in the Gulf of Mexico in April 2010 also looms large in public debate. With a lower profile but with a similar potential to cause environmental harm is the possibility of seabed mining operations. A company is gearing up for deep seabed mining off New Britain in Papua New Guinea. Globally, the main targets are cobalt-rich crusts, polymetallic nodules (on the abyssal plain), and massive sulphide deposits (near hydrothermal vents). In New Zealand iron sands are also attractive. Other possible future uses of the offshore are carbon capture and storage and the extraction of gas hydrates. Existing operations such as fishing by bottom trawling present risks of environmental harm to the benthic environment, especially to features such as seamounts. The Minister for the Environment has now announced his intention to introduce a bill to plug this legal gap, at least in relation to petroleum development and seabed mining. Action on this is most welcome. It is desirable to consider the strengths and weaknesses of the proposal, and of the legal framework for oil and gas well drilling in general. Some surprising gaps remain even if the Minister’s proposal is enacted.
dc.format.mimetype	application/pdf
dc.identifier.citation	Barton, B. (2011). Offshore petroleum and minerals: Plugging gaps in the present framework. The New Zealand Law Journal, 0, 211–214.	en
dc.identifier.issn	0028-8373	en_NZ
dc.identifier.uri	https://hdl.handle.net/10289/9580
dc.language.iso	en
dc.publisher	LexisNexis Nz Limited	en_NZ
dc.relation.isPartOf	The New Zealand Law Journal	en_NZ
dc.relation.uri	http://www.lexisnexis.co.nz/en-nz/products/new-zealand-law-journal.page
dc.rights	This is an authors accepted version. A later version of this article was published in the New Zealand Law Journal 2011 NZLJ 211-214. © 2011 LexisNexis NZ Ltd. Used with permission.
dc.title	Offshore petroleum and minerals: Plugging gaps in the present framework	en_NZ
dc.type	Journal Article
pubs.begin-page	211
pubs.edition	July	en_NZ
pubs.elements-id	36137
pubs.end-page	214
pubs.organisational-group	/Waikato
pubs.organisational-group	/Waikato/FLAW
pubs.volume	0	en_NZ