Canary Islands Call Vote against Oil Exploration
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Local authorities in Spain’s Canary Islands have called a vote on a controversial plan to drill oil and gas off the coast of the popular tourist destination by oil company, Repsol. Residents of the seven-island groups opposed the exploration as they fear that drilling will harm the environment and eventually jeopardize their tourism industry. The company has been granted permission to scour below the seabed 30 miles from Lanzarote and Fuerteventura for three years. In return, Repsol has to provide a deposit amounting to €20 million to offset its environmental impacts and they must cease drilling should an earthquake of a magnitude more than 4.5 hit the region. A civil rights group has planned a protest against the oil drilling across the seven Canary islands on 18 October.
Date & Source: October 2, 2014, The Guardian
