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Articles on Oil and gas exploration

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A 2021 protest in Cape Town against the planned Shell seismic survey for oil and gas along the coast of South Africa. Brenton Geach/Gallo Images/Getty Images

Shell didn’t consult communities properly about mining the Wild Coast – but how much legal protection do South Africans have?

Communities who have lived off the land and the sea for hundreds of years will need to organise if they want to stop giant companies like Shell from destroying their livelihood by mining.
Engineers have tried to corral a mud volcano in Indonesia that has covered more than 1,700 acres with mud. Eka Dharma/AFP via Getty Images

What are mud volcanoes?

When mud, fluids and gases erupt at the Earth’s surface, they hint at what’s happening underground, allowing scientists to build a more comprehensive 3D view of what’s going on inside our planet.
South African marine biodiversity is unique and valuable and the Wild Coast is an especially rich part of that heritage. Peter Unger via GettyImages

Planned seismic survey by Shell has kicked up a storm in South Africa. Here’s an explainer

Researchers share their insights on seismic surveys in South Africa.
Despite fossil fuel use driving a climate crisis, new fields are still in development. Pxhere

We should ban all new oil and gas fields

If we want to limit global warming to below 2°C, most of our untapped fossil fuel reserves need to be kept in the ground.
A polar bear crosses ice In Alaska’s Chukchi Sea area, where a recent court ruling bars the Trump administration from greenlighting offshore drilling. NOAA/OER/Hidden Ocean 2016:The Chukchi Borderlands

A defeat on offshore drilling extends the Trump administration’s losing streak in court

Can presidents undo decisions by their predecessors to protect federal lands from development? A recent court ruling on offshore drilling says no, and could also affect contested lands in Utah.
Research found that media largely frame debate about oil and gas developments in New Zealand around how drilling should take place, rather than whether it should happen at all. Garry Knight/flickr

How media framing limits public debate about oil exploration

Researchers find that mainstream media in New Zealand tend to present fossil fuel development as positive for the economy, while framing opponents as irrational and extremist.

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