joe tidy, bbc news. shetland islanders are split over whether a proposed oilfield off their coastline should be given approval. but some environmentalists are even more concerned about a new wind farm which is currently being built. our correspondent james cook reports. we are sitting on a wealth of natural resources, it s about harnessing that. in 50 years time, 100 years time, we will be looking at the rusted remains of the once glittering wind farm and asking what the hell were we thinking? oil very drastically changed - the community in so many ways. oil has been a real. positive for shetland. here on the idyllic edge of the uk, trouble is brewing. just over this horizon lies the cambo oilield 800 million barrels, which climate campaigners say should stay the ground.
it s about harnessing that. in 50 years time, 100 years time, we will be looking at the rusted remains of the once glittering wind farm and asking, what the hell were we thinking? oil very drastically changed - the community in so many ways. oil has been a real. positive for shetland. here on the idyllic edge of the uk, trouble is brewing. just over this horizon lies the cambo oilield 800 million barrels, which climate campaigners say should stay in the ground. should we stop drilling in these waters now? that is the question facing shetland and, in a way, it is the question facing all of us. are we really ready to power the modern world without oil and gas? there is no point in stopping production of oil and gas - where we can control it in the uk to see it being imported - from outside the uk.
here and look for ways to transition to cleaner energy without creating new oil fields or drilling for new oil. but critics worry about the industrialisation of shetland. if you had to choose between cambo drilling for oil and this wind farm, as an environmentalist, what would you choose? as an environmentalist, i would still choose cambo. viking energy is not a green answer. cambo is removing oil, fossil feel, from the ground but viking energy, in order to get the turbines up, they are using. they are displacing the peat which is a fossil fuel. viking energy say they are restoring far more peatland than they disturb. the carbon payback of this project, taking all those things into account, will be less than two years. we have a vast renewable energy resource in shetland, and the whole world is moving to carbon zero shetland needs to play its part.
cambo is removing oil, fossil fuel, from the ground but viking energy, in order to get their turbines up, they are using. they are displacing the peat, which is a fossil fuel. viking energy say they are restoring far more peatland than they disturb. the carbon payback of this project, taking all those things into account, will be less than two years. we have a vast renewable energy resource in shetland, and the whole world is moving to carbon net zero shetland needs to play its part. modern shetland was built on oil. the proceeds paid for this swimming pool and seven others, but now these beautiful islands are torn about when and how to give up their grimy golden goose. james cook, bbc news, lerwick. the headlines on bbc news: the long awaited plan to pay for the growing cost of social care in england will be set out by the prime minister today.
i think it is not feasible to flip the switch overnight - in terms of the oil and gas. we can t turn it off overnight and have the renewable - energy there because, - quite frankly, the renewable energy is not there. it is coming, though. this huge new wind farm called viking will send electricity from shetland to mainland scotland for the first time. yes, we have massively benefited from oil and gas over the past decades, but we are sitting on a wealth of natural resource and we really should lead by example here and look for ways to transition to cleaner energy without creating new oil fields or drilling for new oil. but critics worry about the industrialisation of shetland. if you had to choose between cambo drilling for oil and this wind farm, as an environmentalist, what would you choose? as an environmentalist, i would still choose cambo. viking energy is not a green answer.