Shell campaigners reject new safety review

Campaigners against Shell's planned onshore gas pipeline in Co Mayo said today they had no confidence that a safety review will be independent and fair.

Five men were jailed in June for refusing to undertake not to block work on the onshore stretch of the Corrib pipeline across their lands near Rossport.

They argue the pipeline, which will carry gas from the offshore field at high pressure to an onshore refinery, poses a huge safety risk to local residents.

The Government yesterday appointed an international consultancy company, Advantica, to conduct the review.

Minister for Communications, the Marine and Natural Resources Noel Dempsey decided to hold a second review to allay the concerns of local residents after they rejected an initial review by a company that was part-owned by Shell.

Advantica was chosen after a tendering process that was contested by eight companies. The findings of its inspection will be made public when the review is completed in six weeks.

But spokesman for the Shell To Sea campaign, Dr Mark Garavan, told ireland.comtoday he had no confidence in the new review.

He said the fact the review was being sponsored by the Government, which he said had supported Shell since the Corrib project began five years ago, meant it could not be expected to be independent.

Dr Garavan also claimed Advantica, which has previously worked for Shell, was "integrated within the oil and gas industry".

In addition, the review would only focus on one aspect of the pipeline, namely "its ability to do what it was designed to do", he said. "But our concerns are with the location of the pipeline, its proximity to homes and the risks it poses to local residents," he said.

Finally, he said the review would be rejected by Shell if it found the pipeline was unsatisfactory, as the company has publicly stated that it will "not feel bound" by the findings of any review.

"There is little objective ground for us to believe that this review will be independent," Dr Garavan added.