A race is underway for the Arctic by a new rush of 21st century pioneers. With icecaps melting, all eyes turn to the Arctic in the hopes of exploiting newfound opportunities. With many existing oil reserves facing depletion, the Arctic is thought to be the final frontier for fossil fuel development. It is estimated approximately 13% of the world's undiscovered oil (90 billion barrels), and 30% of the world's undiscovered natural gas1 lie offshore in the Arctic. Shell, just one of the of the many O&G companies interested in the Arctic, has already spent 6 years and over $5 billion dollars in attempts to drill the pristine north.
Over and above Big Oil’s attention, the Arctic is the center of geopolitical battles, national security interests, and the focus for a plethora of environmental NGO’s and activists alike. Due to shell’s recent history in the arctic, they have become the focal point for many debates since in all their attempts Shell has yet to locate any oil in the Arctic. Recently, following an endless string of incidents and near misses in 2012, Shell decided to pause their Alaskan Arctic drilling mission for 2013, which was then followed by a ban from the US stating “Shell will not be able to move forward into the Arctic to do any kind of exploration unless they have an integrated management plan put in place2”. Additionally, due to a partnership they have with Gazprom, Shell has managed to find it self tangled in the midst of a battle between environmental activists and the Russian Government. Currently, Shell is facing a mess of market and non-market issues with their Arctic exploration, ranging from dropping profits to safety and environmental concerns to NGO’s who want the Arctic to have the same status as the An...
... middle of paper ...
...both bordering the arctic as well as countries who lay in wait for the seas to open up. These partnerships will enable Shell to ensure that regulations are strict enough to prevent companies such as Gazprom and Rosneft from exploiting the Arctic with their dismal safety and environmental record and they will enable Shell to have access to innovate new technologies required for responsible and sustainable drilling in the arctic. To mitigate the risk of current and future border disputes, which could adversely affect Shell’s plans for the Arctic, it is crucial for the Arctic Council (and the UN?) to dictate the rules of the game when dealing with the Arctic. For the Arctic Council to hold any authority they need to work towards opening up the doors of the arctic council to observers may lead it more transparency and credibility for the council as a governing body.
My opponents 1st/2nd/3rd contention was the drilling in the ANWR will harm the environment. This is absolutely incorrect. Lets put this into perspective, the ANWR is 19.6 million acres out of Alaska, which is 240 million acres. The proposed drilling in the coastal plain will be 1.5 million acres. Now, with the new technology we have today, we can tap into the 1.5 million acre oil supply with an oil area that is 2000 acres. 2000 acres is 1/10000 or .0001% of the ANWR. 1.5 million acres of oil and a minuscule possibility of harming at max, 1/10000, I repeat 1/10000th if the ANWR. (Arctic Power)
The environment needs protecting because even before the drilling started hunting was rapidly decreasing the amount of animals in the area. So if drilling occured in Alaska the animal count would go down even more. Drilling is gonna need space, and because Alaska is a mountained and woodland area they will have to make space by destroying trees etc. Destroying trees means destroying animals’ homes. According to document E ‘just look 60 miles west to Prudhoe bay- an oil complex that has turned 1,000 square miles of fragile tundra into a sprawling industrial zone containing, 1,500 miles of roads and pipes’. Also the document states that the would be
The Government of Canada , "Canada's Arctic Foreign Policy." Last modified June 03, 2013. Accessed November 27, 2013. http://www.international.gc.ca/arctic-
In a recent White House brief, President Obama called the Russian invasion of Crimea a clear violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, and international law. When assessing the Russo-Ukrainian crises in Crimea, the commander of European Command (EUCOM) and the Supreme Allied Commander of European Forces (SACUER) must account for U.S. interests in the region before deciding a proper course of action. This essay aims to assess four of the United States’ national interests from the perspective of EUCOM and SACUER. The first section will outline the role of EUCOM and SACUER in the European region and assess the overall problem of Russia invading Crimea. The second section will outline four of the United States’ national interests at stake: international order, trade and economic prosperity, energy supply, and freedom of the seas.
Shabecoff, Philip. “U.S. Asks Exxon for $20 Million to Access Spill Damage in Alaska.”New York Times [New York] 18 January 1990: B4.
The debate on drilling in the Alaskan National Wildlife Refuge is an intensely debated topic in America today. Proponents of the oil drilling believe that the oil in the refuge will solve the high prices of gasoline, but they don’t even know what amount of oil the refuge holds and the amount of oil that we use every year in the United States. The drilling in ANWR will severely damage the wildlife refuge and its environment. The oil would take years to access with drilling and so far there has been no proof that the drilling would actually produce enough oil to sustain our needs as a country. Also, a reason to not drill in the refuge is because the reserve is being saved for when our country is in a national emergency, or until when there is no oil left because of its rapid decline in availability.
Over the last thirty years the United States has been faced with the problem of dependence on foreign countries for oil and the tight control that these exercise on the energy policies and economics of America. Many of these instances include: the oil embargos of the 1970s, the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in 1990, and the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in 2001. Since the 1970s, one solution offered to reduce our nation's dependence on foreign countries for oil has been opening up drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). Proponents say that drilling in ANWR would make the United States more self-sufficient in the area of energy, while at the same time not doing excessive damage to the environment of the area. Opponents of drilling in ANWR cite the environmental problems of off-shore drilling and maintain that this land should be left alone and allowed to stand as an environmental wonder. Given that some environmental groups do not mind allowing technology to invade the environment when it profits them and given the threats of global terror and the ever-increasing dependence our nation has on foreign oil, I believe it is in the best interests of the United States to open up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for oil drilling.
..."Alaska Oil Spill Fuels Concerns Over Arctic Wildlife, Future Drilling." National Geographic News. 20 Mar. 2006. Web. 3 July 2010.
To begin with, the Arctic Council is not a treaty-based organization that involves rules and regulations; rather it is a more of an informal body based on discussions and recommendations. Therefore, it is necessary for the Council to work on a specific goal and then decide the goal would require more than discussions, which could help create more productivity in the council. Furthermore, the Council would need to create a staff that can help prepare for meetings that bring the issues forward to member countries and permanent
The habitat of the Arctic wolf is a very harsh place. The temperature must be below zero degrees. There are tundra, rolling hills, glacier valleys, ice fields, shallow lakes, and green flatlands (Arctic/Antarctic: The Arctic Wolf). These snowy white creators don’t have that many places to live. Arctic wolves used to be everywhere in North America, but sadly now they are reduced to Canada, Alaska, Idaho, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Wisconsin, and Wyoming (Arctic/Antarctic: The Arctic Wolf). Arctic wolves are one of the most dangerous types of wolves; people need to find a way to save them and their habitat before they disappear forever.
Offshore oil drilling has had so many issues recently. It is time to put a stop to it before we completely poison our oceans. So much environmental damage has occurred from this act. The actions being Many people do not support it and think that we need to protect our oceans.
The Arctic Tundra The Tundra is located in the northern regions of North America, Europe, Asia, and Africa. as well as a few regions of Antarctica. The Tundra is the second largest vegetation. zone in Canada. It can be divided into three different sections: the High Arctic Tundra, the Low Arctic Tundra and the Alpine Tundra.
Royal Dutch Shell seeks to create the greatest good for the greatest number, which in our business, takes the form of making our product more readily available and less expensive for our customers. When this is the case, individuals will have more disposable income, our product can be purchased in higher volume, and people in the regions where will drill will reap the benefits of our business ventures. Similarly, when our analysis deems the environmental or public relations damages too large to sustain, the proposed course of action will be abandoned. For example, our proposed Arctic drilling was abandoned partly due the large public outcry that came from the proposed action. This viewpoint could also be defended through a Kantian viewpoint. Our intention through our business operations is not to exploit people. No, through our business, Royal Dutch Shell seeks to provide economic empowerment and cost effective fuels for the world to enjoy. Furthermore, this would not breech the categorical imperative. Our corporation would welcome our course of action becoming a universal, we are not treating people as a means, but rather as ends, and we seek this course of action because it is right to do
Shell’s strategy is strongly positioned to adapt to changes, their extensive scenario planning activity allowed them to constructively think of what operations to promote in order to face environmental changes (Cornelius, P. et al, 2005). They have extensively invested in new technology and renewable resources, adapting to the environmental and social-ethical variables (Shell website, 2016).
As we have discussed, petroleum, natural gas, and its industries are a major factor in our economy. Oil and natural gas’s history, operations, environmental impacts, and present and future challenges demonstrate the importance of these non-renewable natural resources. The exploration of oil will continue to expand through the study of geoscience, engineering, and most importantly, technology. Midstream, containing the main operations of oil and gas, is improving each year in efficient processes for transporting, refining, and storing oil and gas. Despite the numerous challenges that are faced in the petroleum and gas industry, geologists continue to strive to make their operations safer for the environment, but are these efforts enough to save our planet for our future generations?