A controversial proposal to drill for natural gas near a world heritage site is alarming naturalists and environmentalists. It has also caught the attention of the United Nations Organization for Education, Science and Culture.
The proposed hydraulic fracturing of shale rock to release trapped natural gas, or “fracking” would take place just outside the boundaries of Gros Morne National Park in Newfoundland, a UNESCO world heritage site since 1987
On its website, UNESCO describes the park as “a rare example of the process of continental drift, where deep ocean crust and the rocks of the Earth’s mantle lie exposed. More recent glacial action has resulted in some spectacular scenery, with coastal lowland, alpine plateau, fjords, glacial valleys, sheer cliffs, waterfalls and many pristine lakes.”
The company behind the drilling proposal is Black Spruce Exploration, a partner of Toronto-based Shoal Point Energy. They have submitted the fracking and drilling plans for environmental review with the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board, but nothing has been presented to the Newfoundland and Labrador government yet.
Guy Debonnet, is the UNESCO unit chief for North American heritage sites. He says, “Very clearly this is an issue of concern to us”.
Even if the plans are approved in Canada, Debonnet said it may not be enough to satisfy UNESCO. “There is a possibility of de-listing the site from the world heritage list. Of course, we are not talking about this issue for the moment. There are also other procedures in the convention,” he said Canada’s environment commissioner, Scott Vaughan, singled out fracking as an area of concern in his auditor’s report on Canadian environmental regulations.
“According to the government, until it has a better understanding of hydraulic fracturing, it cannot determine whether risk assessments and control measures are warranted,” wrote Vaughan
Earlier this year, Peter Deering, resource manager for Parks Canada in western Newfoundland and Labrador, said officials have questions about how the fracking could affect the park.
“We certainly have concerns around both the tourism side in terms of the experience, and from the environment and ecological side, in terms of what the activity might expose the park to, whether it’s anything from noise, to pollution, to increased traffic.”
Many people living in the area around the park are also concerned about the drilling operation. Late last year when resident Angie Payne learned of the plan she said. “We think it’s awful that they think so little of the people here that they would believe that we would trade our own health and the health of our own home and environment for a few jobs that will only last a little while,”
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