“To give BP the go-ahead with oil exploration would put Australia on the same dangerous path they took to the Gulf of Mexico disaster in 2010,” said Greenpeace Australia Pacific’s Oceans campaigner, Nathaniel Pelle.
“The latest spill and response models, released only days before a decision was originally due, prove BP’s Bight ambitions are an even bigger gamble than previously thought. Oil from an uncontrolled spill could reach the shoreline in every state except Queensland, at a terrible price to local people and the Bight’s unique and precious wildlife.
“The maths is frightening. According to BP itself, within 20 days of a leak, Adelaide, Kangaroo Island and Port Lincoln could be doused in toxic oil and chemicals. BP says it could take 35 days to cap a leaky well off the Great Australian Bight. In the case of the Deepwater Horizon, it took 87.
“The National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA) should reject BP’s plans once and for all, before they progress any further,” said Pelle.