Keith Taylor, Member of European Parliament for Surrey and Green Party leader Natalie Bennett, will today (12 February) join residents in Horse Hill who are campaigning against flow testing on an exploration well at the site. [1]
The company responsible - Horse Hill Developments Limited - arrived on site last week to build a rig and plan to begin extended flow testing next week to establish whether there is any commercial value of the reserves. The as yet unproven claim, made last year, was that there are significant reserves of oil at Horse Hill. [2]
Mr Taylor will visit the site today to meet with campaigners and hear about their concerns over potential oil extraction in the area.
Ahead of the visit, Mr Taylor said:
“I am visiting residents in Horse Hill today to show my solidarity with their concerns. The campaigners here speak up for our communities and our environment – they also play a crucial role in raising awareness locally about the dangers of fossil fuel extraction.
“The discovery of oil at Horse Hill should be the opportunity for us to have an important national debate about keeping fossil fuels in the ground.
“The scientific consensus on climate change has never been greater and we have been told that the only way we have a chance of averting catastrophe is by leaving large reserves of oil in the ground.
“If the UK Government is to meet its climate change targets set under EU law and commitments made only recently in Paris, we must shift our focus to renewables and leave these fossil fuels in the ground.”
“Mr Taylor has supported clean energy campaigners across his South East constituency and recently launched a report which demonstrates the potential for a clean energy revolution in the region.” [3]
Taylor continued:
“I look forward to meeting with campaigners at Horse Hill today. I will support the Horse Hill community in campaigning against any attempts to start oil exploitation in the area in whatever way I can.”
Lisa Scott, a Horse Hill resident:
“I am extremely concerned about the injection of high pressure water and chemicals and the release of potentially huge and unstoppable methane gas under my home. I’m also worried about the huge increase in large lorries that will be seen in our rural roads and the impact this will have on horse riders, cyclists, pedestrians and motorists.”
ENDS
For high quality (non copyright) photographs of Keith Taylor MEP please feel free to use any from his Flickr page: http://www.flickr.com/photos/keithtaylormep/
For more information or to request an interview please contact Krysia Williams (Constituency Coordinator for Keith Taylor MEP) - keithtaylor@greenmeps.org.uk, 02072508415
Notes:
[1] Keith Taylor will be on site from 2pm. Address: Horse Hill Lane, Horley, Surrey, RH6 0HN
[2] http://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/surrey-news/horse-hill-rig-set-up-10832887
[3] Taking Back the Power: Community Energy in the South East is available at http://www.keithtaylormep.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/Taking-Back-The-Power_Community-Energy-in-the-South-East.compressed.pdf