atlantic frontier
Last edited 5 November 1999 at 9:00am
The Government was defeated in court today (5th November 1999) in a landmark legal ruling which protects coral reefs and whales and dolphins in Britain's North East Atlantic. Mr Justice Kay ruled that all future offshore oil licensing is illegal until the Government properly applies the EU Habitats Directive.
Justice Kay told the court that the Government had "clearly" not applied the Habitats Directive in initiating the next round of oil licensing in the North East Atlantic.
Last edited 15 October 1999 at 8:00am
Mr Justice Kay has indicated he will give his verdict within three weeks on Greenpeace's case against the Government for failure to apply the EC Habitats Directive to oil exploration in the Atlantic Frontier.
The case ended Thursday afternoon after Mr Justice Kay heard all the arguments from Greenpeace, the Government and the 10 oil companies. The QC representing the oil companies asked the judge to refer the case to Europe if he found in Greenpeace's favour on certain matters.
Last edited 15 October 1999 at 8:00am
Ten oil companies today attempted to strip European citizens of the right to enforce powerful wildlife laws when their lawyers argued in the High Court that Greenpeace cannot make the Government enforce the European Union Habitats Directive.
Last edited 12 October 1999 at 8:00am
Greenpeace's QC today branded the Government's main legal argument a breach of the organisation's human rights and an abuse of the legal process. The Government argues that Greenpeace delayed in applying for a judicial review of its oil licensing on the Atlantic Frontier and that Greenpeace should have made its application sometime over the last five years.
Last edited 11 October 1999 at 8:00am
The Government has conceded that oil and gas exploration in the Britain's North East Atlantic - the Atlantic Frontier - may harm whales and dolphins. The admission came in the High Court today where Greenpeace is taking the Government to court for failing to apply wildlife protection law up to 200 nautical miles from the coast.
Last edited 11 October 1999 at 8:00am
Blue whale gets less protection than the medicinal leech
Posted by bex — 18 September 1999 at 8:00am
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St. Kilda's precipitous cliffs, crystal clear water and massive seabird colonies have continued to attract generations of divers, sailors and nature-lovers to its shores. It ranks alongside the Taj Mahal, the Grand Canyon and the Great Barrier Reef as a World Heritage Site.
The islands once again find themselves on the edge of a change at least as big as that of the loss of its people. The industrial world is finally encroaching on the wild seas around St Kilda - oil companies are being offered thousands of square miles of the sea-bed of Britain's Atlantic Frontier including areas only 25 miles from St Kilda. In July 1999 the UK Government gave the green light for an oil rig to start drilling west of the Outer Hebrides, just 75 miles from St Kilda.
The IUCN, nature conservation advisors to the UN, have concluded that St Kilda is at high risk from oil developments.
Posted by bex — 2 September 1999 at 8:00am
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There is a long tradition on St Kilda of people being given a say on issues that concerned them. That tradition has now been revived, with everyone having the chance to vote on the future of St Kilda.
Last edited 1 September 1999 at 8:00am
1999-09-01
Following the re-establishment of a parliament on the island of St Kilda last month, two of its founder members have fulfilled the participant's pledge to give everyone a say in the debate about the future of the islands. Donna Brown and Norman Chalmers, two descendants of St Kilda's original population, today started the first-ever public consultation on the new oil developments threatening the islands, by casting the first votes in the referendum.
Last edited 1 September 1999 at 8:00am
Following the re-establishment of a parliament on the island of St Kilda last month, two of its founder members have fulfilled the participant's pledge to give everyone a say in the debate about the future of the islands. Donna Brown and Norman Chalmers, two descendants of St Kilda's original population, today started the first-ever public consultation on the new oil developments threatening the islands, by casting the first votes in the referendum.
