President Obama has approved offshore drilling for oil and natural gas in sensitive areas of the Arctic. This move has disappointed many people who hoped for better environmental awareness from this administration.
US Gives Shell Green Light for Offshore Oil Drilling in the Arctic
Anchorage, Alaska - Conservation groups based in Alaska have accused the Obama administration of repeating the mistakes of George Bush after it gave the conditional go-ahead for Shell to begin drilling offshore for oil and natural gas in the environmentally sensitive Beaufort Sea.
The Minerals Management Service, part of the federal Interior Department, yesterday gave Shell the green light to begin exploratory wells off the north coast of Alaska in an Arctic area that is home to large numbers of endangered bowhead whales and polar bears, as well as walruses, ice seals and other species. The permission would run from July to October next year, though Shell has promised to suspend operations from its drill ship from late August when local Inuit people embark on subsistence hunting.
Three Questions
1) How does the Obama administration compare to the Bush administration on matters of environmental awareness and green energy: better, about the same, or worse?
2) Do you feel that the potential gains from this drilling project outweigh the risks? Why or why not?
3) Do you think America could get more bang for its buck by investing in other energy ventures, and if so, which?
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