Fears oil drilling on the Isle of Wight could impact the UNESCO Biosphere status it holds has been one of the main objections to the proposals — but the company behind the plans say it will have a negligible effect upon the status.
The Isle of Wight was designated as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in June last year, marking the Island as an area of environmental significance as it became only the seventh destination in the UK to be given such status.
As part of the status, the Island conserves species and ecosystems, fosters sustainable development and supports research and monitoring of conservation and development.
Since UK Oil and Gas’s (UKOG) plans to construct and operate exploratory boreholes in Arreton were made public, those against the proposals have argued, among other points, that the Island’s Biosphere status would be in danger.
Now, however, UKOG has submitted a statement to the Isle of Wight Council’s planning department regarding the proposed development and its compatibility with the UNESCO Biosphere, saying it would not compromise the integrity or favourable conservation status of the reserve.
It says the proposed development is in a ‘transition zone’ relating to the Biosphere – one where people live and work in a sustainable manner – and the only development criteria for the zone is that sustainable resource management practices should be promoted and developed.
In the environmental statement linked to the application, UKOG say the significant effects derived from the proposed development and its mitigation mean the residual effects would be ‘negligible’.
UKOG also say the proposal is compliant with objectives in the Isle of Wight Island Plan to make the development sustainable.
The current planning application (20/00513/FUL) has, according to campaign group Don’t Drill The Wight, received more than a thousand letters of objection.
The site in Arreton could be home to the boreholes to explore whether it would be viable to produce hydrocarbons in the future. If it is a successful mission, UKOG would need to submit another application for the drilling process.
The Isle of Wight Council is due to make a decision on the planning application in the Autumn, at a meeting of the planning committee, with the agreed extended date for decision published on its website as of 21st October.
If the council agree it will show they have no respect for the island or the people living here
Come Bob seely put your foot down for once and use your powers
if the council had any respect for the island of the people living here – pennyfeathers and the other grotesque ecological disaster housing developments would have been laughed out of the office at the idea stage, rather than actually getting a planning application submitted
Stephen, I believe you have to try to get your head around the idea that our MP, the top councillors and developers on the Island are all separate entities. They are in person, but are all too close for comfort imo.
Akin to a group of friends, all looking out for one another first and foremost, not just individuals, against one another, so will clearly do whatever is best for the group, rather than the people on the Island, UNLESS the two coincide, which is rare.
UKOG are only existing thus far by keep issuing more and more shares as their cash burn is huge, and income very slight.
Their share price was over 10p, now it is .2, not 2p but 0.2 of a penny. Hardly a glowing testament to a successful company.
I include a link to show this and the chat about UKOG, if it is allowed on here:
https://www.lse.co.uk/SharePrice.asp?shareprice=UKOG&share=Uk-Oil-and-Gas
My concern is should they have oil leach into our water table or supply, that they won’t have the wherewithal to remedy any such costly disaster, leaving us, the council tax payer to pay for the clean up costs.
This is so wrong for the Island. We need green energy, not old out dated oil.
Imagine IF they do find such, tankers on those busy congested roads, the Ferry ports only allowing such on the ‘explosive’ boat, late at night, noise.
Ban it before it ever starts causing disruption here.
This is the ‘vegetable basket’ of Wight.
Oil is not just used for energy .it is needed to produce nearly everything we require to live .we need oil .
Is it better to buy oil and gas from abroad then….ideal world we would all live a pastrol exsitance..none are willing to give up reliable fuel sources..we drive we want heating along with all other convieneces…all gives off same pollutant just this way no shelling out cash to some arab country.
Like our coal, it is often cheaper and more viable to get oil from further afield, as it is to buy coal from Poland as it is cheaper and more easily extracted than doing so from deep pits in the UK.
With oil a huge tanker will cause less pollution than dozens of road tankers, then having to go onto a ferry, all using oil and pollution taking a relatively small amount to a refinery.
True that the money will likely stay here, but the insignificant amounts will hardly be life changing, yet a serious incident and noisy tankers would be.
Forget it.