A SOUTH African high court on Tuesday blocked Shell from conducting seismic testing offshore from South Africa’s pristine Wild Coast, in the latest ruling in a case seeking to prevent the oil major from exploring for oil and gas.
On December 3 a different high court order gave Shell the go-ahead to conduct an extensive seismic survey off South Africa’s eastern coast, but this is stopped by Tuesday’s ruling that forms part of a broader court application contending Shell did not have the necessary environmental approvals.
“We respect the court’s decision and have paused the survey while we review the judgement,” a Shell spokesperson said.
Environmentalists and others have protested against Shell’s plans for seismic blasting, saying its underwater acoustics are harmful to marine animals, especially migrating whales.
“Shell must stop pending the resolution of our application for a final interdict, which we are equally confident of,” Johan Lorenzen, one
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