Yesterday, the Obama administration approved Shell Oil’s exploration plan to begin drilling in the Arctic’s Chukchi Sea, despite common sense and science forewarning the potentially catastrophic outcome.
In 2012, the world had a front-row seat to view how Shell would operate in the Arctic: the result was disastrous. Shell encountered numerous safety and operational problems, and the escapade culminated with one of its oil rigs running aground.
A review of Shell’s actions by the Department of the Interior highlighted how woefully unprepared Shell was, mentioning among the company’s all-around failures, basic operational tasks such as supervising contractors performing critical work. Following their review, the Interior Department informed Shell that it could no longer drill until it had resolved their numerous safety issues.
Now, despite this history and an environmental analysis from the Obama administration itself predicting a 75% chance of a major oil spill, the administration is permitting Shell to drill in the Chukchi Sea.
There have been loud calls from protesters in Seattle, where Shell has housed its fleet used to drill in the Arctic, to stop Shell from drilling in the Arctic. In addition to ongoing marches through the city, hundreds of activists will gather on May 16th for the “Paddle in Seattle” to protest Shell’s plans to begin drilling in the Chukchi Sea and its use of Seattle as its Arctic staging port.
The administration’s approval of Shell’s drilling plans comes on the heels of the United States assuming chairmanship of the Arctic Council, an international body dedicated to protecting the Arctic environment. Rather than seize this opportunity and lead the world on climate by keeping dirty fuels in the ground, this Administration is continuing to encourage destructive development.
The dangerous risks the Obama administration is taking by approving Shell’s drilling plan is apparent, and it is time they say ‘no’ to drilling in America’s Arctic Ocean, cancel these leases, and remove the possibility of future leasing from the five-year offshore drilling plan.