Guest speakers include SECA members Danny Lee (Petersfield Climate Action Network) and Emily Mott (Weald Action Group) as well as James Turitto (Clean Air Task Force). The session will be facilitated by Jill Sutcliffe.
The Weald Action Group has called the government’s proposed ‘climate compatibility checkpoint’ for future oil and gas licensing in the UK Continental Shelf ‘inherently flawed’ – and says the checkpoint threatens both the government’s ability to meet its own net-zero target and the stability of the global climate.
Horse Hill challenge dismissed – but judgment not unanimous
Court of Appeal judges were divided over a claim that Surrey County Council acted unlawfully when it decided to grant planning permission for new oil wells and 20 years of oil production at Horse Hill in Surrey.
One of three judges agreed with campaigner Sarah Finch and intervenor Friends of the Earth that the council should have considered the full climate impacts of the development, including the ‘downstream’ greenhouse gas emissions that will be produced when the oil extracted at Horse Hill is eventually burned.
The Weald Action Group has objected to Angus Energy’s planning application to produce oil at Brockham until 2036.
Angus is applying to retain one of the three wells on the site, BRX4, and reperforate it to allow for appraisal and production of hydrocarbons for a ‘temporary period’ of 15 years. The other two wells have been plugged and abandoned. Read the application documents here: https://planning.surreycc.gov.uk/planappdisp.aspx?AppNo=SCC%20Ref%202021/0165
The legal challenge to Surrey County Council’s 2019 decision to allow 20 years of drilling at Horse Hill was heard in the Appeal Court on 16-17 November.
Lawyers on both sides argued their cases, and the judges listened attentively. They will now deliberate, and we do not expect to hear the outcome for several weeks, or possibly longer.
Thank you everyone who was part of this, it has been a huge team effort, and funded by hundreds of people.”
UK government to defend council’s controversial decision in court
9am, campaigners with placards will gather outside the Royal Courts of Justice on the Strand to mark their opposition to oil drilling at Horse Hill
A woman who opposes Surrey County Council’s decision to allow oil drilling in greenbelt countryside, near Gatwick airport, is taking her legal battle to the Court of Appeal today.
The Court of Appeal will hear a legal challenge on Tuesday 16 November 2021 to Surrey County Council’s controversial decision to grant planning permission for 20 years oil production at Horse Hill, in greenbelt countryside in Surrey.
Mozambican campaigner Kete Fumo sent a message of solidarity with those fighting the Horse Hill case – and called on UK citizens to support and publicise their fight. Her message was broadcast at the Horse Hill Climate Justice Rally on 6 November:
Demonstrators will join thousands across the world at a rally at the Horse Hill drill site on 6 November 2021 as part of the Global Day of Action for Climate Justice. [1]