{"id":3134,"date":"2018-04-21T17:07:06","date_gmt":"2018-04-21T05:07:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/new-zealand\/?p=3134"},"modified":"2025-06-25T01:46:22","modified_gmt":"2025-06-24T13:46:22","slug":"greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/","title":{"rendered":"Greenpeace oil campaign: seven years in the wilderness"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>A photograph popped up on my Facebook feed recently, saying &#8211; \u201cseven years ago today\u201d. It was a shot of the crew from the Oil Free Seas flotilla being welcomed onto Kauaetangohia Marae at the isolated tip of the East Cape, where the rising sun first strikes our islands through the pure sea air. The iwi of that place &#8211; Te Wh\u0101nau-\u0101-Apanui &#8211; had utterly humbled us with a 500-strong haka on the beach as we came ashore.<\/p>\n\n<p>After the p\u014dwhiri, there was a vast banquet of local kai moana, and non-stop performances throughout the dinner from the stage of the whare kai, which had been finely painted with the ancestral story of the tribe by Apanui artist, Cliff Whiting.<\/p>\n\n<p>Greenpeace and a small flotilla of independent sailors had responded to the call of Apanui to join them in their resistance against Brazilian oil giant, Petrobras, which was about to begin seismic blasting in the the Raukumara basin &#8211; the iwi\u2019s customary waters &#8211; in search for oil.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Highlights from the 2011 Stop Deep Sea Oil Flotilla\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/FHu6_P6tcz0?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n<p>Exactly 42 days later, and the Petrobras seismic ship departed those waters. The flotilla had stayed the course and harried the oil search. The New Zealand Navy had been mobilised to board the protest ships and police had made arrests.<\/p>\n\n<p>Iwi leader Rikirangi Gage was on board fishing boat San Pietro alongside Apanui fisherman, Elvis Teddy, when Gage stoically informed the oncoming seismic ship by radio that \u201cwe will not be moving, we will be doing some fishing\u201d.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large caption-style-medium caption-alignment-center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/c353a1bb-gp02cbk_treated-1024x693.jpg\" alt=\"Skippers, crew and activists from the flotilla of five boats, which travelled from around the North Island, arrive at the hui in Whangaparaoa Bay. <div class=\"credit icon-left\"> \u00a9 Greenpeace \/ Malcolm Pullman<\/div>&#8221; class=&#8221;wp-image-3139&#8243;\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Skippers, crew and activists from the flotilla of five boats, which travelled from around the North Island, arrive at the hui in Whangaparaoa Bay. <div class=\"credit icon-left\"> \u00a9 Greenpeace \/ Malcolm Pullman<\/div><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p>A few days earlier, activist Kylie Matthews (Ng\u0101puhi), had entered the dark blue water in front of the blaster with a \u2018Stop Deep Sea Oil\u2019 banner, forcing it off course. These three are surely the first among many heroes who, over coming years, would join the campaign to defend New Zealand\u2019s waters from the invasive dangers of oil exploration.<\/p>\n\n<p>With recent political announcements, now seems a fitting time to recount some of that history.<\/p>\n\n<p>By the year following the first Oil Free Seas flotilla, Petrobras had relinquished their oil exploration permit and announced their exit. I distinctly remember Apanui lawyer, Dayle Takitimu &#8211; a lynchpin and stalwart of the struggle &#8211; calling to see if the reports were a ruse of some sort. In the depths of fears for a treasured home, it sometimes seemed impossible that we might s\ucceed.<\/p>\n\n<p>The next company to tarnish our horizon &#8211; literally, in a 34,000 tonne drillship &#8211; was Texan driller, Anadarko. Almost too bad to be true, they had a 25% interest in the worst oil disaster in history: the Deepwater Horizon blowout in the Gulf of Mexico, which spewed oil up from 1,500 metres below the surface for 87 days in 2011, choking the gulf and all the creatures that lived there in thick crude. It was a picture book apocalypse &#8211; oil on fire at sea &#8211; billowing columns of black into the sky.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignnone caption-style-medium caption-alignment-center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"693\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/f4897422-gp0stofhj_treated-1024x693.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3143\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/f4897422-gp0stofhj_treated-1024x693.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/f4897422-gp0stofhj_treated-600x406.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/f4897422-gp0stofhj_treated-768x520.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/f4897422-gp0stofhj_treated-502x340.jpg 502w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/f4897422-gp0stofhj_treated.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Greenpeace supporters show their opposition to deep sea oil drilling in New Zealand waters at a &#8216;Banners On The Beach&#8217; event in Piha.<div class=\"credit icon-left\"> \u00a9 Greenpeace \/ Alex Monteith<\/div><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p>Now Anadarko were coming to our seas, both the East Coast off Kaikoura to seismic blast, and the West Coast directly off Raglan, to drill at &#8211; you guessed it &#8211; 1,500 meters.<\/p>\n\n<p>Anadarko\u2019s imminent arrival off Kaikoura incurred the wrath of local iwi, the wider community and eco tourism operators who, Led by Sir Mark Solomon, rallied to defend their customary waters in an unprecedented show of united protest.<\/p>\n\n<p>And then over Easter 2013, the Minister of Energy and Resources Simon Bridges snuck out an announcement of a new draconian anti protest law designed specifically to stop groups like Greenpeace and its allies protesting against oil ships at sea. The legislation, d\ubbed the \u2018Anadarko Amendment\u2019, was condemned as anti-democratic by former Prime Minister, Sir Geoffrey Palmer, and public figures including Dame Anne Salmond and Sir Ted Thomas.<\/p>\n\n<p>Not to be deterred, a new flotilla of six vessels lead by former Rainbow Warrior crew member Bunny McDiarmid, now the Greenpeace International Executive Director, set out to confront the massive Anadarko drillship &#8211; so big it looked like a floating city block &#8211; and to make a point of breaking the Anadarko Amendment\u2019s 500-metre exclusion zone, thereby openly defying Bridges\u2019 new law.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignnone caption-style-medium caption-alignment-center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"693\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/850fa6fe-gp0stob44_treated-1024x693.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3142\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/850fa6fe-gp0stob44_treated-1024x693.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/850fa6fe-gp0stob44_treated-600x406.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/850fa6fe-gp0stob44_treated-768x520.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/850fa6fe-gp0stob44_treated-502x340.jpg 502w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/850fa6fe-gp0stob44_treated.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The sailing vessel Tiama, part of the Oil Free Seas Flotilla, sails in front of the drill ship the Noble Bob Douglas.<div class=\"credit icon-left\"> \u00a9 Greenpeace \/ Nick Tapp<\/div><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p>This time, the profile of the protest meant the authorities didn\u2019t dare act. At the height of the flotilla, thousands of people painted banners and joined forces on beaches up and down the West Coast in solidarity.<\/p>\n\n<p>Anadarko\u2019s drilling eventually proceeded, but they didn\u2019t find what they were looking for. A second drill attempt later on, this time off the Otago Coast, also met with protest and struck granite. As the years went by, with the oil price low and no sign of respite from protest, the Texans too gave up their interests in New Zealand.<\/p>\n\n<p>Among many chapters in this campaign, another that stands out was the delegation to Norway of local tribal members, Te Parewhero kaum\u0101tua Te Wani Otene, and Greenpeace campaigners Hinekaa Mako and Mike Smith, seeking the support of the indigenous Saami people through their independent parliament and to make it abundantly clear that the Norwegian state driller Statoil was not welcome in Ng\u0101puhi\u2019s part of the world.<\/p>\n\n<p>The delegation had a powerful impact, inspiring the Saami President to reciprocate by making a journey to New Zealand and the Far North to meet with local iwi. On the day of her arrival, Statoil announced that they were surrendering their permit in the sacred waters of the Te Reinga basin in the Far North.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignnone caption-style-medium caption-alignment-center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"694\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/1ba60cb2-gp0stpy00_treated-1024x694.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3144\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/1ba60cb2-gp0stpy00_treated-1024x694.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/1ba60cb2-gp0stpy00_treated-600x407.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/1ba60cb2-gp0stpy00_treated-768x520.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/1ba60cb2-gp0stpy00_treated-502x340.jpg 502w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/1ba60cb2-gp0stpy00_treated.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Fire boat response crews battle the blazing remnants of the off shore oil rig Deepwater Horizon.<div class=\"credit icon-left\"> \u00a9 U.S. Coast Guards<\/div><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p>A vital aspect to the success of the seven-year oil campaign has been the alliance between Greenpeace, M\u0101ori, and the wider community.<\/p>\n\n<p>Most recently, East Coast iwi Ng\u0101ti Kahungunu mobilised its traditional bluewater Waka Hourua, Te Matau a M\u0101ui, to challenge the world\u2019s biggest seismic blasting ship the Amazon Warrior, AKA \u2018The Beast\u2019, as it searched for oil on behalf of Statoil, Chevron and Austrian driller OMV off the Wairarapa Coast.<\/p>\n\n<p>Greenpeace also travelled the 60 nautical miles out to sea out to meet The Beast in crowd-funded boat, Taitu.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignnone caption-style-medium caption-alignment-center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"694\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/e1655d49-gp0stqomp_treated-1024x694.jpg\" title=\"Greenpeace Executive Director Russel Norman swimming with buoy and banner that reads &quot;Rise Up \/ End Oil&quot; in front of seismic testing vessel Amazon Warrior.\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3042\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/e1655d49-gp0stqomp_treated-1024x694.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/e1655d49-gp0stqomp_treated-600x406.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/e1655d49-gp0stqomp_treated-768x520.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/e1655d49-gp0stqomp_treated-502x340.jpg 502w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/e1655d49-gp0stqomp_treated.jpg 1890w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Greenpeace Executive Director Russel Norman swimming with buoy and banner that reads &#8220;Rise Up \/ End Oil&#8221; in front of seismic testing vessel Amazon Warrior.<div class=\"credit icon-left\"> \u00a9 Jason Blair \/ Greenpeace<\/div><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p>Our executive director Russel Norman, alongside volunteer Sara Howell, entered the water in front of the 125 metre long ship, forcing it to make a full turn and stop its search for oil that day. The activists and Greenpeace were charged by the oil division of the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment (MBIE), under Bridge\u2019s \u2018Anadarko Amendment&#8217;. They are now facing a year in jail and up to $300,000 in collective fines and are preparing to fight the charges in court.<\/p>\n\n<p>Following the Amazon Warrior\u2019s arrival, over 80 coastal hap\u016b declared their unanimous rejection of oil exploration, culminating in a historic agreement by the National Iwi Chairpersons Forum last December to oppose all seismic testing and oil exploration in the waters of New Zealand.<\/p>\n\n<p>Over this time staff and volunteers have come and gone from the Greenpeace office, and all have played a part. Notably, Simon Boxer, who first devised the strategy of resisting oil drilling at sea. I also want to remember four friends we\u2019ve lost &#8211; dedicated volunteer, Emily Drinkwater; our passionate sailor and lawyer comrade Sir Peter Williams; and another, who didn\u2019t hesitate in making a statement in defiance of the Anadarko Amendment &#8211; Dr Ranginui Walker; and the inimitable Rata Pue who drove to the gates of Taranaki Port with a boot load of food for Lucy Lawless and the seven activists atop the the Shell drillship in 2012, and when they were released from lockup personally placed exquisite pounamu \u201cmedals\u201d around each of their necks. Rest in peace friends &#8211; you played your part.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignnone caption-style-medium caption-alignment-center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"694\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/79fa222e-mermaid-searcher-7-1024x694.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3045\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/79fa222e-mermaid-searcher-7-1024x694.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/79fa222e-mermaid-searcher-7-600x406.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/79fa222e-mermaid-searcher-7-768x520.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/79fa222e-mermaid-searcher-7-502x340.jpg 502w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/79fa222e-mermaid-searcher-7.jpg 1890w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Activists on board the Mermaid Searcher in January<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p>This summer the surface temperature of the Tasman peaked at six degrees above normal. The water was balmy and over many afternoons I watched the thickening grey thunderheads form over my West Auckland home. The changes are happening now, rapidly and all around us. I do fear for what the future holds.<\/p>\n\n<p>Over the last couple of years, a new bloom of campaigners, communicators, and mobilisors have taken up the oil campaign batten, none of whom were here when this work began in 2011. These struggles are always intergenerational. A few weeks ago they drafted a heartfelt open letter to our new Prime Minister calling for an end to oil and gas exploration. Dozens of notable New Zealanders were quick to sign. The letter complimented a Greenpeace petition to the new Coalition Government, which was signed by more than 50,000 people in just a few short months.<\/p>\n\n<p>On a sunny day outside Parliament in March, already etched in my memory, is the moment Jacinda Ardern came down in person to receive that petition. It was a poignant turn. It seemed that the winds of change were at our back, that we were close to what could be a big breakthrough for the climate movement.<\/p>\n\n<p>I always felt we would s\ucceed, but hoped it wouldn\u2019t be too late to play a meaningful part in the global transformation our humanity so urgently needs to avert the existential threat of climate change.<\/p>\n\n<p>A few weeks later, on April 12, 2018, Jacinda stood before a young crowd at Victoria University. She stood in front of the leaders of the next generation &#8211; those who will inherit our climate legacy &#8211; and declared an end to new offshore oil and gas exploration, in what is already being hailed as an historic moment for New Zealand.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignnone caption-style-medium caption-alignment-center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/GP0STRNYF_PressMedia-1024x683.jpg\" title=\"Jacinda Ardern accepts Greenpeace petition ahead of announcing the ban on awarding new oil and gas exploration permits\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1975\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/GP0STRNYF_PressMedia-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/GP0STRNYF_PressMedia-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/GP0STRNYF_PressMedia-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/GP0STRNYF_PressMedia-510x340.jpg 510w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/GP0STRNYF_PressMedia.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The Prime Minister of New Zealand speaks at Greenpeace event presenting a petition signed by more than 45,000 people calling for an end to oil exploration.<div class=\"credit icon-left\"> \u00a9 Greenpeace \/ Marty Melville<\/div><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p>There is still work to be done. We need to end all oil and gas exploration permanently in New Zealand. As it stands, the Government\u2019s announcement allows for both existing licences to continue, and for onshore exploration in Taranaki. Taranaki is where New Zealand\u2019s first oil well was dug in 1865, on territory stolen from M\u0101ori. The community there still have to deal with the nightmare of ongoing fracking and exploration.<\/p>\n\n<p>But the offshore ban is an undeniable breakthrough. It means the world&#8217;s fourth largest Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) has closed the door on future exploitation of the reserves of oil and gas that we must leave beneath in the seafloor if we are to avoid catastrophic climate change. By doing so we open the door to the clean energy industries that will themselves help provide a just transition for workers. It puts New Zealand back where we belong, the little country that leads globally on the issues of our era that matter most &#8211; as we did when we banned nuclear ships and gave women the vote.<\/p>\n\n<p>In concluding her speech to the Victoria University students, Ardern said: \u201cWe can be a world leader in becoming carbon neutral. We owe this to future generations. Ultimately, we owe it to you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n<p>My son was born seven years ago in May. His middle name is Raukumara, named with Apanui\u2019s blessing, after that first major struggle in modern history against the oil drillers in New Zealand. One day he might ask to know the story of how we s\ucceeded in our resistance. I will be proud to tell him of just a few of the many thousands of good and determined people who made it happen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A photograph popped up on my Facebook feed recently, saying &#8211; \u201cseven years ago today\u201d. It was a shot of the crew from the Oil Free Seas flotilla being welcomed onto Kauaetangohia Marae at the isolated tip of the East Cape, where the rising sun first strikes our islands through the pure sea air. The iwi of that place &#8211; Te Wh\u0101nau-\u0101-Apanui &#8211; had utterly humbled us with a 500-strong haka on the beach as we came ashore.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":3258,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_planet4_optimize_post_is_variant":false,"_planet4_optimize_experiment_name":"","_planet4_optimize_variant_name":"","ep_exclude_from_search":false,"p4_og_title":"","p4_og_description":"","p4_og_image":"","p4_og_image_id":"","p4_seo_canonical_url":"","p4_campaign_name":"not set","p4_local_project":"not set","p4_basket_name":"not set","p4_department":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[26],"p4-page-type":[6],"class_list":["post-3134","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-greenpeace","tag-oil-and-gas","p4-page-type-story"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.8 (Yoast SEO v26.8) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Greenpeace oil campaign: seven years in the wilderness<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Greenpeace oil campaign: seven years in the wilderness\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A photograph popped up on my Facebook feed recently, saying - \u201cseven years ago today\u201d. It was a shot of the crew from the Oil Free Seas flotilla being welcomed onto Kauaetangohia Marae at the isolated tip of the East Cape, where the rising sun first strikes our islands through the pure sea air. The iwi of that place - Te Wh\u0101nau-\u0101-Apanui - had utterly humbled us with a 500-strong haka on the beach as we came ashore.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Greenpeace Aotearoa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/greenpeace.nz\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-04-21T05:07:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-06-24T13:46:22+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/6326536b-gp04gyk_pressmedia.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1920\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1300\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Steve Abel\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@GreenpeaceNZ\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@GreenpeaceNZ\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Steve Abel\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"10 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Steve Abel\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/#\/schema\/person\/cf59518fab08f1f4b5027e75b37b66d1\"},\"headline\":\"Greenpeace oil campaign: seven years in the wilderness\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-04-21T05:07:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-06-24T13:46:22+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/\"},\"wordCount\":2004,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/6326536b-gp04gyk_pressmedia.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Oil&amp;Gas\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Greenpeace\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/\",\"name\":\"Greenpeace oil campaign: seven years in the wilderness\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/6326536b-gp04gyk_pressmedia.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-04-21T05:07:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-06-24T13:46:22+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/#\/schema\/person\/cf59518fab08f1f4b5027e75b37b66d1\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/6326536b-gp04gyk_pressmedia.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/6326536b-gp04gyk_pressmedia.jpg\",\"width\":1920,\"height\":1300,\"caption\":\"Former Greenpeace campaigner Steve Abel and Elvis Teddy greet each other at the Oil Drill Withdrawal Festival in New Zealand: The Greenpeace crew of the new Rainbow Warrior met Te Wh\u0101nau a Apanui at Whangaparaoa, East Cape to celebrate the withdrawal of oil giant Petrobras which had planned to drill for deep sea oil.\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Greenpeace oil campaign: seven years in the wilderness\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/\",\"name\":\"Greenpeace Aotearoa\",\"description\":\"Our mission is to ensure Earth\u2019s ability to nurture life in all its diversity.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/#\/schema\/person\/cf59518fab08f1f4b5027e75b37b66d1\",\"name\":\"Steve Abel\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/fc6fed7bab1b33d42a38f7ac5c140cb3f9e580f75927d2baecb26b7625991018?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/fc6fed7bab1b33d42a38f7ac5c140cb3f9e580f75927d2baecb26b7625991018?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Steve Abel\"},\"description\":\"Steve Abel is a long-time environmental and climate activist who was part of the successful campaign to end native logging on crown land in the late 1990s; the GE Free environment campaign in the early 2000s; the Greenpeace campaign to stop Marsden B coalfired power station in 2005; and the alliance with Te Wh\u0101nau-\u0101-Apanui against Petrobras which led to a seven-year campaign that culminated in the end to offshore oil and gas exploration in Aotearoa in 2018. Abel is part of the urban tree protection group \u2013 Mana R\u0101kau \u2013 which emerged from the 240+ day occupation of the Canal Road native tree stand in Avondale that began in 2020. From 2021, as Senior Campaigner for Greenpeace Aotearoa, Steve led the project to provide free nitrate water testing for rural people on bore supplies impacted by dairy contamination. Having first volunteered for Greenpeace in 1997, Abel resigned from the organisation in early 2023 to stand for parliament.\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/author\/sabel\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Greenpeace oil campaign: seven years in the wilderness","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Greenpeace oil campaign: seven years in the wilderness","og_description":"A photograph popped up on my Facebook feed recently, saying - \u201cseven years ago today\u201d. It was a shot of the crew from the Oil Free Seas flotilla being welcomed onto Kauaetangohia Marae at the isolated tip of the East Cape, where the rising sun first strikes our islands through the pure sea air. The iwi of that place - Te Wh\u0101nau-\u0101-Apanui - had utterly humbled us with a 500-strong haka on the beach as we came ashore.","og_url":"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/","og_site_name":"Greenpeace Aotearoa","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/greenpeace.nz","article_published_time":"2018-04-21T05:07:06+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-06-24T13:46:22+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1920,"height":1300,"url":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/6326536b-gp04gyk_pressmedia.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Steve Abel","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@GreenpeaceNZ","twitter_site":"@GreenpeaceNZ","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Steve Abel","Est. reading time":"10 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/"},"author":{"name":"Steve Abel","@id":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/#\/schema\/person\/cf59518fab08f1f4b5027e75b37b66d1"},"headline":"Greenpeace oil campaign: seven years in the wilderness","datePublished":"2018-04-21T05:07:06+00:00","dateModified":"2025-06-24T13:46:22+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/"},"wordCount":2004,"image":{"@id":"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/6326536b-gp04gyk_pressmedia.jpg","keywords":["Oil&amp;Gas"],"articleSection":["Greenpeace"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/","url":"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/","name":"Greenpeace oil campaign: seven years in the wilderness","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/6326536b-gp04gyk_pressmedia.jpg","datePublished":"2018-04-21T05:07:06+00:00","dateModified":"2025-06-24T13:46:22+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/#\/schema\/person\/cf59518fab08f1f4b5027e75b37b66d1"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/6326536b-gp04gyk_pressmedia.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-aotearoa-stateless\/2018\/05\/6326536b-gp04gyk_pressmedia.jpg","width":1920,"height":1300,"caption":"Former Greenpeace campaigner Steve Abel and Elvis Teddy greet each other at the Oil Drill Withdrawal Festival in New Zealand: The Greenpeace crew of the new Rainbow Warrior met Te Wh\u0101nau a Apanui at Whangaparaoa, East Cape to celebrate the withdrawal of oil giant Petrobras which had planned to drill for deep sea oil."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/greenpeace-oil-campaign-seven-years-in-the-wilderness\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"http:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Greenpeace oil campaign: seven years in the wilderness"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/","name":"Greenpeace Aotearoa","description":"Our mission is to ensure Earth\u2019s ability to nurture life in all its diversity.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/#\/schema\/person\/cf59518fab08f1f4b5027e75b37b66d1","name":"Steve Abel","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/fc6fed7bab1b33d42a38f7ac5c140cb3f9e580f75927d2baecb26b7625991018?s=96&d=blank&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/fc6fed7bab1b33d42a38f7ac5c140cb3f9e580f75927d2baecb26b7625991018?s=96&d=blank&r=g","caption":"Steve Abel"},"description":"Steve Abel is a long-time environmental and climate activist who was part of the successful campaign to end native logging on crown land in the late 1990s; the GE Free environment campaign in the early 2000s; the Greenpeace campaign to stop Marsden B coalfired power station in 2005; and the alliance with Te Wh\u0101nau-\u0101-Apanui against Petrobras which led to a seven-year campaign that culminated in the end to offshore oil and gas exploration in Aotearoa in 2018. Abel is part of the urban tree protection group \u2013 Mana R\u0101kau \u2013 which emerged from the 240+ day occupation of the Canal Road native tree stand in Avondale that began in 2020. From 2021, as Senior Campaigner for Greenpeace Aotearoa, Steve led the project to provide free nitrate water testing for rural people on bore supplies impacted by dairy contamination. Having first volunteered for Greenpeace in 1997, Abel resigned from the organisation in early 2023 to stand for parliament.","url":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/author\/sabel\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3134","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/26"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3134"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3134\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":71636,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3134\/revisions\/71636"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3258"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3134"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3134"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3134"},{"taxonomy":"p4-page-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/p4-page-type?post=3134"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}