{"id":268881,"date":"2025-07-30T14:35:45","date_gmt":"2025-07-30T12:35:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/?p=268881"},"modified":"2025-08-01T10:02:29","modified_gmt":"2025-08-01T08:02:29","slug":"powerful-new-short-film-sheds-light-on-a-david-and-goliath-battle-to-protect-south-africas-oceans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/powerful-new-short-film-sheds-light-on-a-david-and-goliath-battle-to-protect-south-africas-oceans\/","title":{"rendered":"Powerful new short film sheds light on a \u2018David and Goliath\u2019 battle to protect South Africa\u2019s oceans"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A new South African short film Spoiled<\/em> has premiered at a high-level workshop in Cape Town this week. This marine-focused event unpacked the findings of the Wildtrust driven project highlighting the environmental, social and economic risks of offshore oil and gas in South Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The film carries an urgent call to protect South Africa\u2019s rich and irreplaceable marine heritage from the growing threat of offshore oil and gas exploration. It weaves together the stories of coastal communities, activists, scientists, and traditional fishers who are standing up to one of the greatest environmental and social threats facing the country\u2019s oceans today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Presented by non-profit organisations Wildtrust <\/a>and The Green Connection<\/a>, and produced by Love Africa Marketing, the film takes viewers along the rugged coastline of the Northern Cape and the culturally rich Wild Coast of the Eastern Cape.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the heart of the film lies a simple truth: around 90% of South Africa\u2019s oceans are at risk. The film uncovers the cracks in the system that allow international oil and gas giants to exploit these waters, including flawed Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs), a lack of meaningful public consultation, and the leasing of the ocean without community consent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cThere\u2019s not enough effort being made to explain to people what the advantages and disadvantages of, or the impact of offshore oil and gas will be on coastal community livelihoods and on the ocean,\u201d says Neville van Rooy, community outreach coordinator for The Green Connection. “All they usually do, is paint a beautiful picture by telling people about jobs, which they know will get people – especially when they hear it from government officials. The reality is that there are very few jobs created for our people.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Testimonies paint a bleak picture<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Featuring deeply personal interviews with local fishers, activists, youth and community leaders, the film explores themes of justice, environmental degradation, and resistance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s almost as though my heart has been called to it. That is why I can say with pride that I love the ocean and will do anything in my power to protect it,\u201d says Chanel Jaar, who started the Environmental Traits Youth Organisation in Port Nolloth – a small town along the coastline of the Northern Cape.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Their testimonies paint a picture of what is at stake: biodiversity, food security, coastal heritage, and ultimately the survival of future generations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLook at Mexico, for five years now they\u2019ve been struggling to get that oil spill cleaned. That community is suffering. Look at Nigeria; their fishermen are suffering. Their boats are lying high and dry, never touching the water because there\u2019s no more water, it’s oil,\u201d adds Walter Steenkamp, Chair of the Fishing Co-operative for Aukotowa Fishers in Port Nolloth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHowever, this isn\u2019t just a story of destruction,\u201d says Lauren van Nijkerk, Wildtrust campaign’s director. \u201cIt\u2019s a story of hope. Spoiled<\/em> is a tribute to the everyday heroes who are defending their livelihoods, their heritage and the sea itself.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Critical time for SA<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The film goes a step further by encouraging greater public involvement in pushing back on the offshore oil and gas application processes. As part of its call to action, viewers are directed to an interactive platform available at www.stopthespoil.co.za, where several active offshore oil and gas applications – their status in process, public participation process information – across South Africa\u2019s coastline are listed, enabling the public to stay informed in an industry that relies on the lack of available data, and have their voices heard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe interactive platform we have developed in partnership with The Green Connection features detailed information of around 15 applications for oil and gas giants in South Africa\u2019s ocean,\u201d says Van Nijkerk. \u201cThe vision is to one day have information on every single application by oil and gas wanting to lease a block of our ocean space living on this platform, giving the public an opportunity to have a \u2018one-stop-shop\u2019 to make informed decisions and get involved in stakeholder consultation that ensures every South African has a say in how our oceans are utilised.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The launch of the film comes at a critical time for South Africa, as environmental and climate justice organisations wait in anticipation for the release of our country\u2019s Integrated Energy Plan (IEP). The IEP is a national roadmap that aims to shape how South Africa produces, distributes, and consumes energy in the coming decades. It seeks to balance the country\u2019s energy needs with environmental sustainability, economic growth, and social justice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOperation Pakhisa, which means \u2018hurry up\u2019, was South Africa\u2019s idea of pushing for a Blue Economy, but the system is just wrong because it assumes that the ocean is just there to exploit for economic gain,\u201d says van Rooy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cIt doesn\u2019t take into account the inherent value that an ocean would have in terms of ecosystem services, in terms of heritage, culture and that such an ocean feeds thousands of families around the coast of South Africa.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Van Rooy adds that \u201call alternative energy solutions have their pros and cons, and we need to make sure that people are not worse off when the Integrated Energy Plan is implemented.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In February 2023, Wildtrust unveiled a groundbreaking oil spill model for South Africa, a first-of-its-kind aimed at showing the real-world risks of offshore oil operations, using a proposed ultra-deep drill site off Durban, KZN. Developed with partners from the University of Cape Town, Nelson Mandela University, and international experts in ocean modelling, the model reveals that shoreline contamination could occur in as little as three days along the east coast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The fast-flowing Agulhas Current would transport oil large distances, hindering predictions of where oil would reach the shoreline, complicating clean-up efforts. The model indicates that a blow-out spill on the East coast could result in the need for beach clean-up operations as far away as the West coast. The minimum time for oil to shoreline impact could be as little as three days for the East coast of South Africa, and within about 10 days for the South coast and 30 days for the West coast. The results highlight what civil society has long feared, the risks of oil and gas exploration in South African waters are not theoretical, but rather they are imminent and potentially catastrophic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf we remain complacent, we risk losing not only our coastline, but our ability to shape a future that values life over profit,\u201d adds Jaar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WATCH: SPOILED – OFFICIAL FILM<\/h4>\n\n\n\n