TWO Isle of Wight councillors who spearheaded opposition to highly controversial pipeline plans by ExxonMobil, expressed delight the oil and gas giants had done a U-turn.

The juggernaut American company announced yesterday (Thursday, October 3) it had told the government, it had abandoned its proposal to capture emissions from its Fawley refinery and transport CO2 to a storage site beneath the English Channel.

All summer, ExxonMobil had been holding consultation meetings on both sides of The Solent about its proposed CO2 pipeline.

The highly controversial plans, if approved, would have seen drilling under fields and open spaces on the Island or New Forest, with red flags raised about the potential disruption it would have had on businesses and farms.

(Image: Rob Chiverton) There were also deep concerns about the safety of such a project.

Last month, the Isle of Wight Council unanimously opposed ExxonMobil's proposal, called Carbon Capture, in a full council vote, spearheaded by councillors Nick Stuart and Claire Critchison. 

Read more: ExxonMobil statement after scrapping Isle of Wight pipeline

The Green Party's Cllr Critchison, a former Isle of Wight Council chairman, and LibDem's Cllr Stuart, were at the forefront of IW Call to Action — a cross-party anti-pipeline campaign.

Giving her reaction to the announcement today (Friday), Cllr Critchison said: "This is a huge relief for the Isle of Wight and New Forest residents. This project would have had major impact on our special designated areas and tourism, as well as the safety aspects which were a major concern.

"I thank all the landowners, residents and interested parties involved in the campaign to stop the pipeline.

"It has been a Solent-wide effort to ensure we do not destroy irreplaceable landscapes in the name of climate change solutions."

Read more: ExxonMobil abandons Isle of Wight fuel pipeline, says MP

Cllr Stuart echoed her sentiments.

"I was delighted to be told ExxonMobil had recognised the overwhelming opposition of Islanders, and withdrew its proposal," he said.

"In spite of the gloss ExxonMobil gave about lack of government support, there is little doubt enormous numbers of Islanders who opposed their foolishness, affected their thinking. 

"This was down to the efforts of those in different groups, across parties and in communities. Everyone should be proud they helped force a massive corporation to back down.

"From the moment I first heard of this scheme, and started a petition, it was obvious this scheme was a non-starter.

Read more: Grassroots campaigners react to ExxonMobil pipeline decision

"If it had gone ahead, it would've caused immense damage to our landscape and environment and presented massive safety issues.

"It was heart-warming to help lead the political efforts to oppose this scheme. Residents’ views echoed, with massive numbers building on the petitions and highlighting the dangerous, damaging nonsense of ExxonMobil's 'carbon capture' folly. 

"We must hope ExxonMobil will shelve this proposal for good and, instead, focus their efforts and investment into actually reducing its CO2 output."