Protest warning as Greenpeace chases survey ship

Officials are urging people protesting against the seismic survey ship Amazon Warrior to avoid putting themselves and others in danger.

Greenpeace has said it has breached a 500-metre non-interference zone around the vessel and dropped people in the water ahead of it, forcing it to take evasive action.

Last week the Hawke's Bay-based Te Matau a Maui waka confronted the world's largest seismic survey ship to protest against its search for oil off the East Coast. It came after the Government released 49,630sq km in the East Coast offshore area as part of the Block Offer 2017 last month, and as the Hawke's Bay Regional Council proposes prohibiting oil and gas exploration activities on land.

In 2013, Parliament made it illegal for protest activity to interfere with seismic survey or other vessels involved in permitted and lawful petroleum work.

The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment yesterday said it would be investigating alleged breaches of the Crown Minerals Act.

"The non-interference provisions are not about removing the right to protest. They are about balancing the right to protest with an operator's right to get on with their work - while promoting the safety of everyone involved," said ministry general manager James Stevenson-Wallace.

"Petroleum operations at sea are complex, often very precise and can be at an industrial scale. The vessels carry high-tech equipment, can be large and have limited manoeuvrability.

"People are free to protest oil and gas activity at sea, as they are on land, but they cannot disrupt a legitimate operation and create health and safety risks. The provisions are as much to protect the protesters as the crew of the Amazon Warrior."

Mr Stevenson-Wallace said seismic surveys helped to build our scientific knowledge and understanding of New Zealand.

"The survey data also helps create a picture of the geology beneath our oceans. The information gathered is shared with the Government and in time is made freely available. It can be very useful to researchers, including GNS Science, who use seismic data for fault-line mapping.

"The Government has developed a robust regulatory regime to ensure oil and gas activities are undertaken to the highest standards - which includes minimising any potential impacts on marine mammals, such as whales and dolphins. Any seismic survey vessels operating in our Exclusive Economic Zone have to follow the Department of Conservation's Code of Conduct for seismic surveying."