Maarten Camps, a former top civil servant at the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate, twice pressured independent supervisor Theodor Kockelkoren of the State Supervision on Mines (SodM) to postpone the publication of its advice on how many homes in the Groningen earthquake zone need to be strengthened. That is remarkable because the SodM’s independent advisory task is legally protected, NRC reports.
Residents had been opposing gas production since earthquakes started to force them out of their homes a decade ago. Russia's invasion of Ukraine changed their minds.