  
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 17, 2012
Contact:
Virginia Cramer, 804-225-9113 x 102
Shell Oil Plan to Drill
off Arctic Coast Advances
The Obama administration today approved
an oil spill response plan for Shell's proposal to drill in the
Chukchi Sea, putting the company one step closer to drilling in the
pristine Arctic waters of the Polar Bear Seas. Shell wants to start
drilling in the Arctic as soon as this summer.
The Chukchi is the Arctic's westernmost
sea. It supports approximately one-tenth of the world's remaining
polar bear population and is an important migration route for
endangered bowhead and beluga whales.
In response Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune
issued the following statement.
"We are deeply disappointed in the decision to approve Shell's
oil spill response plan. The risk to fragile natural systems and
native communities is clear. There remain significant questions
about whether spill prevention, containment and response systems are
equipped to work in challenging Arctic conditions. There also remain
huge knowledge gaps in scientific understanding about life in the
Arctic waters and the potential impacts of drilling.
Big Oil's dismal spill record belies their continued assurance of
safety. The unproven technology proposed in Shell's plan will not
protect the irreplaceable scenery and wildlife of the Polar Bear
Seas. Shell and other oil companies should not be allowed to move
forward with risky, dangerous plans to drill in this pristine area.
We should not entrust the future of one of our last wild
frontiers, and the communities that rely on it for subsistence, to
Big Oil. President Obama should permanently protect the wonders of
the Polar Bear Seas, not open them to drilling that will only deepen
our addiction to oil."
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