A leading scientist at the University of the Algarve has spoken out against what he calls the “ludicrous claims” of the region’s anti-oil lobby, led by citizens group ASMAA (Algarve Surf and Marine Activities Association).
Paulo Fernandes, assistant professor of geology at the University of the Algarve, has found himself misquoted in articles recently covered by local media centring on a petition launched by ASMAA to fight gas and oil exploration off the Algarve’s coast.
Talking to the Resident this week, he said: “I do not support ASMAA’s views regarding oil exploration in the Algarve Basin. Some of their claims have no scientific grounding, and others are just ludicrous.”
Asked which claims in particular were “ludicrous”, Fernandes replied: “Practically all of them.”
The Phd lecturer, whose speciality is in the analysis of sedimentary basins, said it was completely wrong to put out scare-stories on how life in the Algarve would be damaged by offshore drilling for hydrocarbons. “The opposite is much more likely to be true,” he told us.
“One thing that people seem to forget is that we have supertankers travelling through the Algarve’s waters everyday from the Middle East. These carry a far higher risk than any drilling platform could pose.
“Try to imagine Rio de Janeiro, at the beach. Brazil isn’t known for its oil industry, it is more known for its tourism; but in Rio you can see the rigs from the shore, and no one is complaining. Indeed, there is a flourishing tourist industry!
“What ASMAA has been saying is untrue and ludicrous,” he reiterated.
The misquoting – which has been repeated by the English-speaking news media in the Algarve – centres on Fernandes’ statement: “According to what I have studied, there is no direct evidence of hydrocarbons in the Algarve basin.”
“It was a claim taken entirely out of context,” he explains. “I was trying to be educational, and explain that there was no ‘oil show’ on-shore of hydrocarbons. I only work with onshore samples. Offshore, I understand there is indeed evidence of ‘oil show’ – and my belief is that there is a very good chance of gas and oil reserves off the Algarve coast.”
“Being misquoted is one thing, but having my quotes associated with a group that I do not agree with is quite wrong.
“I felt that I should write to ASMAA and say I do not support their claims or authorise the use of my statements in any literature on their campaign.”
ASMAA’s campaign has been gathering force since last year when the group’s literature dropped into followers’ email boxes declaring: “Unless something is done by all of us in the next couple of months – then the Algarve we know and love is history.”
Repeated emails have followed, almost all of them asking for money and reminding people that they “stand to lose everything” unless ASMAA can “reach each and everyone and share with them the facts, the risks and what they can do to protect themselves.”
“There is no doubt that the Algarve is facing a strategic moment in history,” said ASMAA. “Whether we will all gather in unity or not; whether we will support each other or not, that is a choice that we will all have to make.”
ASMAA is run by a core group of volunteers and is based in the town of Lagos.
By NATASHA DONN [email protected]
Photo: Paulo Fernandes is an assistant professor of geology at the University of the Algarve
