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MAURA HARRINGTON

Shell investigates accidental severing of gas pipe at Corrib terminal

Shell to Sea spokeswoman Maura Harrington said “Shell, despite all their talk of being ‘good neighbours’, said nothing to anyone” until the radio station was alerted.

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Shell said the accidental severing of a gas pipe at its plant at Ballinaboy, Co Mayo, posed “no danger to the environment” and the company was investigating the circumstances. File photograph: Mark Stedman/Photocall Ireland.

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Campaigners criticise company for failing to make incident public

Lorna Siggins Sat April 20, 2013

Shell E&P Ireland has said it is conducting an internal investigation, following the inadvertent cutting of a gas pipe at the Corrib gas terminal earlier this month.

The incident, which occurred during work on water pipes at the terminal site in north Mayo, resulted in nitrogen being released into the atmosphere.

As a precaution, all nitrogen was “vented off”, according to the company. The Ballinaboy terminal built to refine gas from the Corrib gas field is not yet active, as work is still continuing on the last section of the project – the onshore pipeline. read more

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UN Special Rapporteur calls for full investigation of Corrib Human Rights issues

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In a report submitted to the UN Human Right Council last Monday (4th March), the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders Margaret Sekaggya, called on the Irish Government to “Investigate all allegation and reports of intimidation, harassment and surveillance in the context of the Corrib Gas dispute in a prompt and impartial manner”. [1]

Mrs Margaret Sekaggya visited Ireland last November to assess the situation for Human Rights Defenders in Ireland. On the 21st of November she met with a delegation from Shell to Sea.[2] read more

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Allegations made against Allseas Group

“Any implication that Allseas is any way involved in, or supported by, a political agenda – including any reference to conspiracy, criminality and non-transparent business relationships – is completely unfounded and refuted in the strongest possible terms.”

By John Donovan

I was recently approached by a party who made serious allegations against the Swiss-based Allseas Group, “a global leader in offshore pipeline installation and subsea construction.”

Someone appears to have put a considerable effort into putting forward a detailed set of allegations supported by extensive documentary evidence. That does not mean the allegations are true.

The source of the allegations drew my attention to Allseas links with Royal Dutch Shell.

In this connection, we have previously published leaked emails sent to Allseas by Shell EP Ireland in respect of the Corrib Gas Project. On 9 September 2008, Maura Harrington, a leading figure in the Shell to Sea campaign went on hunger strike in protest at the arrival of the Solitaire, an Allseas pipe-laying ship assisting in the Corrib project. read more

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Irish Supplier Accuses Shell of Bribery, Cover-up and Sinister Threats

By John Donovan

Printed below is a leaked email to a Shell EP Ireland manager, Mr Brian Foley, sent by a thoroughly disenchanted local supplier to the Corrib Gas Project in Ireland, an enterprise dogged by controversy.

This includes several months imprisonment of local landowners, the Rossport Five and a hunger-strike by another jailed campaigner, the retired school principal, Maura Harrington, the current spokesperson for the Shell to Sea campaign.

Two sources have confirmed the authenticity of the email, which makes serious allegations that seem to have drawn several Shell officials, mangers and executives into the story, including the Chief Executive Officer of Shell EP Ireland, Mr Michael Crothers. read more

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Machine removed from Mayo road

3 August 2012 (Evening)

IRISH TIMES REPORTERS

A giant tunnel boring machine belonging to Shell, which became stuck on Tuesday after the lorry it was being transported on jack-knifed at an isolated Co Mayo crossroads, has been removed.

A spokesman for Mayo County Council said the junction at Glenamoy crossroads near the villages of Rossport and Carrowteigue was now cleared and that traffic was back to normal.
In a statement Shell E&P Ireland said it “apologises once again to the local community and to all road users who were inconvenienced by this incident”. read more

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Heavy vehicles deployed to shift lorry

Friday, August 3, 2012, 10:37

ÁINE RYAN

More than 100 gardaí escorted a convoy of heavy vehicles to the isolated Glenamoy crossroads in north Mayo at about 4.30am this morning in a bid to free Shell’s giant tunnel boring machine.

A spokesman for Rossport Solidarity Camp said the gardaí implemented checkpoints from about 10km away at Bangor Erris.

He confirmed that veteran campaigner, Maura Harrington, was arrested at one of the checkpoints, and that the rear window of her van smashed when she declined to exit it. The van was subsequently impounded and Ms Harrington was detained at Belmullet  Garda station. read more

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Shell’s boring machine bogged down in Ireland

Shell machine remains stuck

AINE RYAN

Shell’s giant tunnel boring machine is expected to remain at an isolated Co Mayo crossroads for a third night, as residents questioned the ability of the boggy road to withstand the weight of heavy removal vehicles and some protestors vowed to continue their actions.

A Mayo County Council spokesman confirmed the local authority was continuing to work with oil company experts and hoped the machine and jack-knifed lorry would be removed within the next two days.

“It is envisaged that the problem will be resolved in the next 24 to 48 hours but that is contingent on the level of protest activity encountered. The protestors have already delayed the transportation of lifting equipment to the scene,” the council spokesman said. read more

This website and sisters royaldutchshellplc.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

TV documentary: John Donovan and Royal Dutch Shell

By John Donovan

On Tuesday 3 April, a film crew from a national TV broadcaster spent 7 hours filming at my home in Colchester and nearby locations. The filming continued outside the Shell Centre for 3 hours yesterday. I am indebted to all who assisted, including Shell to Sea spokesperson, Maura Harrington.

The feature is about our unique relationship with Royal Dutch Shell. A decade enjoying a mutually beneficial relationship, followed by two decades of acrimony, including several High Court actions and related sinister activity, including the machinations of a hapless undercover agent acting for Shell.
read more

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Oil giant Shell announces new Corrib gas chief

The Irish Times – Tuesday, November 22, 2011

ÁINE RYAN

SHELL HAS announced the appointment of a new managing director at the Corrib gas project.

The communique came as local protest groups yesterday declined an invitation to contribute to a joint Oireachtas committee hearing on offshore resources and their exploration.

Michael Crothers is a Canadian native, born to Irish parents, and takes the helm as Shell prepares for the final phase of the operation. This involves construction of the longest sub-sea raw gas pipeline in western Europe. read more

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Corrib gas objectors denied entry to hearing

Corrib gas objectors denied entry to Oireachtas hearing

The Irish Times – Wednesday, September 28, 2011

PAUL CULLEN

SECURITY STAFF at the Houses of the Oireachtas yesterday refused entry to a group of opponents of the Corrib gas terminal who had travelled from Co Mayo to attend an Oireachtas committee.

The group of 15 Shell to Sea supporters travelled to Dublin at the invitation of Fianna Fáil deputy leader Éamon Ó Cuív to attend a hearing of the Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Natural Resources and Agriculture about offshore exploration licences. read more

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Irish resistance against Shell Corrib project continues


Issued by Shell to Sea
Wednesday 20 th July 2011 – 11am

Shell to Sea protest halts Shell’s peat works for second day

At 10.30 am this morning Shell to Sea campaigners stopped work for the second day in a row at the Bord na Móna site at Shramore, near Bangor, Co. Mayo. They are currently on the site and occupying machinery.

The site is currently preparing to store the 125,000 tonnes of peat that Shell will attempt to remove in the coming weeks. While rural communities are faced with a turf cutting ban, Shell is allowed to remove 125,000 tonnes from an area surrounded by EU Special Areas of Conservation, this on top of the 600,000 tonnes of peat that was removed during the creation of Shell’s refinery in Ballinaboy. A banner saying “Turf Cutting – One law for people, One law for Shell” was hung on the gates of the Bord na Móna site. read more

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Maura Harrington update on Shell Corrib project

Dear John,

I’ve attached for your perusal up to the minute stuff connected with the proposed Shell/Corrib project in north Mayo.

There are two attachments from the Peoples’ Forum proceedings held at the weekend – Mrs Joy Phido’s was printed as a supplement and included with the main copy of contributions. Mrs Phido’s willingness to travel from London was very much appreciated by the local community and the empathy which has always existed between the Ogoni people and ourselves was once again underlined; there were also very good contributions from those with a national profile – Kieran Allen, Harry Browne and Colm Rapple together with local contributions from Niall King, retired Principal Rossport Primary School and Sam from the Solidarity Camp not forgetting of course Majella McCarron’s paper on the current and developing area of Human Rights. read more

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Shell’s battle for the heart of Ireland

guardian.co.uk home The Observer home

Ed Vulliamy: The Observer, Sunday 29 May 2011

This land is our land: pipeline protesters Willie and Mary Corduff at the quay at Rossport. Photograph: Murdo MacLeod for the Observer

If the sea is calm, you can hear the traffic in New York,” goes the local introduction to the breathtaking beauty of Erris, in the north of County Mayo, where the coastline winds its way through little coves and beneath the cliffs of the wild seaboard at Europe‘s edge. Most nights, though, Manhattan must be quiet, for the only audible sounds are the distant baying of a dog several miles away, the soft bleating of newborn lambs from lush coastal meadows and the sighing of the brine as it moves across rocks and shingle. read more

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Protestors blockade Corrib Natural Gas building

Corrib building blockaded as Shell AGM held in The Hague and London

Áine Ryan: 17 May 2011

AS ROYAL Dutch Shell holds its AGM in The Hague and London today (Tuesday),  protestors blockaded the Corrib Natural Gas building in Belmullet, to highlight the giant oil company’s huge profits.

The small group of Shell to Sea and Rossport Solidarity Camp protestors stopped workers from entering or exiting the building from about 7.30am.

A Shell spokeswoman confirmed there were company personnel already in the building and that some work continued.

The protestors were peacefully removed, without incident, shortly before noon, after a team of IRMS (Integrated Risk Management Services) security guards arrived. Earlier, retired Garda Supt Pat Doyle, now working for IRMS, had negotiated with the group. read more

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Harrington undertakes not to interfere with Shell activities

Tuesday, 05 April 2011 14:00

Well-known Shell to Sea activist Maura Harrington has given an undertaking to the Circuit Court not to interfere with workers employed by Shell in their operations at Glengad.

The undertaking was given by her defence on behalf of Maura Harrington, Doohoma, Belmullet, who had custodial sentences imposed in the District Court unconditionally suspended by Judge Raymond Groarke at Ballina Circuit Court on Tuesday last.
The offences related to activities back in 2008 and 2009 when Ms. Harrington was convicted of careless driving, trespassing with intent at Glengad and using a scissors to criminally damage netting at Glengad.
read more

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Corrib Gas Dispute: Statement by Maura Harrington to An Bord Pleanála hearing

On 12 October 2006 Harrington sustained head and neck injuries while Gardaí cleared demonstrators blocking an access road used by Shell workers. On 9 September 2008 she began a hunger strike in protest at the arrival of the Solitaire, an Allseas pipe-laying ship assisting Royal Dutch Shell's Corrib gas project.

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FT: Irish grass roots clog Shell gas pipeline

EXTRACTS

As the road approaches the Shell gas terminal at Ballinaboy on Ireland’s Atlantic west coast, only the posters pinned to the telegraph poles give any hint of the country’s longest-running environmental protest.

…for the past four years this remote but beautiful corner of north Mayo has been the setting for a bitter industrial dispute. At times, hundreds of police have been deployed to break up pickets. And this summer, the tiny hamlets of Glengad and Rossport looked on as two Irish navy frigates moored in Broadhaven Bay, apparently there to stop the protesters’ dinghies interfering with the Solitaire, Shell’s vast pipe-laying ship. read more

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Environmental Showdown on the Irish Coast

Along with making martyrs of five soft-spoken family farmers, the imprisonments took the mask off of Shell's already clumsy public relations effort. "If we had been living in a country that allowed hanging, would Shell have asked for them to be hanged?" asks the wife of one of the Rossport 5. It's a question that many here have pondered as clashes with police have grown increasingly violent.

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Briefing from the Rossport Solidarity Camp on the Shell Corrib Pipeline battle

Today, at the end of the traditional Good Friday walk around 30 people entered Shell’s land to walk down to remove the net. We were met by around 40 security. We attempted to remove the net and the security attempted to stop us... During the struggle, a pair of scissors was produced and the net was cut in two. After, we all left together; there were no arrests.

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Corrib talks collapse over basic ‘disagreement’

The discussions were the first between Rossport Five members and Shell since the five were jailed for 94 days in 2005. Their imprisonment arose from their opposition to the routing of the high-pressure Corrib gas onshore pipeline.

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Update on opposition to Shell Corrib Gas Project in Ireland

Rossport Solidarity Camp Update – 14th March 09

This is a brief update on the recent jailing of Maura Harrington, the attack on Niall Harnett and other recent legal updates.

Summary of the Update Below

Maura Harrington has been jailed for 28 days (now in her 4th day).  Please send her a postcard.
Shell Work in Glengad still hasn’t begun, but is expected to in the near future.  Off-shore pipe laying expected to begin in May.
Gardaí have begun to hand out summonses to local Shell to Sea people in advance of the Shell work beginning

Maura Harrington Jailed for 28 Days

On 11 March 2009, Maura Harrington was sentenced to 28 days in prison in relation to an assault at Pollathomais Pier on the 11th June 2007.  On that occasion, Gardaí and Shell used a digger to force their way onto private property against the wishes of the landowner in order to facilitate the construction of a portacabin.
Here’s a YouTube clip of the Pier incident: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SP7iBPIBkZc
Or to read an indy report on it see: http://www.indymedia.ie/article/82983 read more

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Norris questions judge’s ruling in Shell to Sea case

A minister of the day had given this field away for nothing to Shell, which was one of the worst polluters and one of the most avid multinationals. He would be very sorry if, the Garda having been enlisted on behalf of a multinational, the court system should then begin to play a role in this matter.

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Shell to Sea campaigners protest at Department of Justice

Asked if the campaign welcomed the support from Republican Sinn Fein, thought by the PSNI and Gardaí to be the political wing of the Continuity IRA, Mr Ó Mongáin said "we welcome support from everyone and every quarter, we won’t deny support from anyone".

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Shell to Sea campaigner jailed for 28 days for assault on garda

In sentencing her, Judge Devins told Ms Harrington she was less inclined to believe in her passion for her cause having “witnessed the enjoyment she seems to get in being in the public limelight”.

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Shell opposition groups boycott Mayo forum

“Shell to Sea would wholeheartedly welcome any open forum if it was willing to deal with Corrib gas project in its totality. Shell to Sea also object to the pressure various community and development groups in the area have been put under to take part in the Government sponsored event.”

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Irish government announce new initiative to sort Corrib gas issue

The arrival of the pipe laying ship the Solitaire in the area earlier this year led prominent Shell to Sea protester Maura Harrington to stage a hunger strike which she only halted when the ship left Irish waters

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New forum on Corrib gas project set up

A NEW Government-backed initiative on the Corrib gas project expects to begin hearings "within the month", according to the two Ministers involved.

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Shell protester accused of ‘lunge’ towards President

SHELL TO Sea protester Maura Harrington has appeared in Belmullet District Court accused of "lunging" towards President Mary McAleese at the official opening of a civic centre in Belmullet in April of 2007.

This website and sisters royaldutchshellplc.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Ministers meet locals on Corrib project

TWO GOVERNMENT Ministers have described as "very constructive" a series of discussions on the controversial Corrib gas project held with politicians and community groups in Ballina, Co Mayo.

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A plea for calm on the unquiet sea

When a ship arrived last month to begin laying pipes that would bring gas from the Corrib field onshore at Mayo, protesters took to their kayaks and Maura Harrington declared she would starve herself to death if it didn't leave.

This website and sisters royaldutchshellplc.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.

Brockovich urges Shell to reroute gas pipeline in Ireland

Erin Brockovich, the campaigner who was immortalised in an Oscar-winning film, today urged oil giant Shell to reroute a controversial gas pipeline in the west of Ireland.

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MAURA HARRINGTON ENDS HUNGER STRIKE AS SOLITAIRE LEAVES IRISH WATERS

Shell to Sea salutes the courage and tenacity of Maura Harrington throughout her hunger strike, and we wish her a speedy recovery for her ordeal in the company of her family. Her action has resonated around Ireland and the world, and has shone a light of publicity upon the situation in Erris, publicity which Shell and the Government of Ireland have tried with all their power to deny us.

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Mayo groups call for Corrib gas talks

Labour Party president Michael D Higgins has also called on the Government to "take seriously the genuine desire of many" to "bring peace to north Mayo".

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Maura Harrington Corrib pipeline hunger strike: “indulge potty protesters and you end up with Sarah Palin””

We shouldn’t occupy ourselves too much with the whys or wheretofores of Shell’s pipeline project. At this stage one is required to believe that the pipeline is either quite safe or the product of a mass conspiracy by every authority in the country

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Harrington hunger strike continues

High-profile Shell to Sea campaigner Maura Harrington has vowed to continue her hunger strike until written confirmation is given that the Solitaire is out of Irish territorial waters. At the time of going to print yesterday evening (Thursday) she was in her car at Glengad maintaining her protest.

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Solitaire sails into an Irish storm

Printed below is a request received from Maura Harrington from the Sea to Shell Campaign followed by her email correspondence with Allseas, the Swiss-based owner of the Solitaire, the worlds largest and most powerful offshore pipelaying vessel expected to arrive shortly in Broadhaven Bay, Ireland, after being chartered by Shell.

This website and sisters royaldutchshellplc.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.