Bringing hope to the Corrib gas debate

Bringing hope to the Corrib gas debate


Liamy MacNally

History was made last Friday. Minister Éamon Ó Cuív hosted a meeting in his departmental offices with Shell personnel and community members from north Mayo. His Government colleague, Minister Éamon Ryan, was also present. The local people were represented by Pobal Chill Chomáin and Pobal Le Chéile – community- and business-backed organisations respectively, from north Mayo. It was the first formal acknowledgement by the Irish Government that the will of the local community in north Mayo has a bearing on the Corrib gas project. Granted, that recognition should have become a reality years ago, with people claiming it should have been done as far back as 1996 when Corrib’s head first rose above the offshore parapet.
Éamon Ó Cuív is the first Government person to recognise the elephant in the room when it comes to the Corrib project – the local community. For too long their wishes have been ignored and trampled on by the State, its agents and by Shell and its agents. A line was drawn in the sand last Friday, March 20, 2009. What will unravel in the future cannot be predicted but a start was made and credit is due to all concerned. Even the start was not without its difficulties as Shell tried to ‘substitute’ one of their team (who was ill) at the last minute and proposed the head of their PR wing. The people of north Mayo said no, politely but firmly. They were right. This time Shell will have to realise and accept that they do not control the agenda. The talks have an open agenda. 
Already there are too many Corrib gas casualties - the Rossport Five, Maura Harrington, their families and numerous local people, Gardaí, Shell and State employees. Up to last Friday – the day of the talks – there were claims that Shell employees provoked local people by deliberately filming them ‘in your face’ to get a reaction. This occurred on the Rossport commonage regardless of a court order forbidding access to it by Shell and/or its agents. Whether these were attempts to scupper the talks or not is another question.     
The talks are ‘solution focused’. The open agenda can only mean one thing. Recognition of the ‘elephant in the room’ will gave way to another insight – the herd of elephants in the room. By ignoring reality since the inception of Corrib the Government has allowed various concerns to fester. They will all have to be dealt with. Seeking the consent of the local community has a knock-on effect on all aspects of the Corrib project. 
The roles of Government agencies – from Mayo County Council to various Departments – will have to be examined. The issue of consents – in all their guises – will have to be studied. Awkward questions will have to asked – and answered. There are questions aplenty. Time has not withered their importance. Why did Frank Fahey sign off on the Corrib Plan of Development when he was leaving office as Marine Minister? Could it not have waited? Is the plan that was signed off applicable to what is actually happening today? The Plan of Development approval letter in 2002 states: “The approval is subject to the following conditions: Commencement of commercial production operations in January 2004.”  That has not happened!
Every iota of consent will have to be re-examined in these current talks. These talks are not about saving careers of anybody anywhere, in Government, Shell or their respective agents. These talks are about seeking local community approval for a project that will impact on their lives every day. The project is no good to anyone without local community consent. People have been seeking this for years, perhaps now there is a little hope on the horizon. People want gas, not conflict.
After several hard hours of talking it seems highly likely that further talks are probable. Anything that will go some way towards resolving the Corrib gas open wound is to be warmly welcomed. Hopefully, Éamon Ryan’s smothered voice – loud in opposition – will find its resonance while ‘ministered’. The talks cannot be allowed to be a window-dressing to allow the project to continue unabated. This event cannot become a mere ‘going through the motions’ to enable one side to add it to a list of ‘sins’ by the other side. The talks, under the Chairmanship of Mr Joe Brosnan, with their open agenda, demand honest participation, frank discussion, mutual respect and considered compromise.                          
Local people want a truth to be recognised. The Corrib gas project has, is and will affect the people of north Mayo directly. If that is done then all partners in the project can ensure that there are no victims. The local community, Ministers Éamon Ó Cuív and Éamon Ryan, Shell and Joe Brosnan must be supported in this.