Environmental News

The Arctic: Oil or a pristine and unique ecosystem?

The Arctic: Oil or a pristine and unique ecosystem?
Bernadine Racoma

An online campaign aiming for three million signatures is being waged by Greenpeace in the effort to ban drilling for oil in the Arctic and declare the region as a global sanctuary. This campaign is called Save the Arctic and so far they have gathered 2,420,210 signatures from around the world. Greenpeace is joined by the World Wildlife Fund, The Wilderness Society and other environmental groups in bringing global awareness to the possible environmental impact of drilling in the Arctic. Various other campaigns are currently being fought for no-go zones in the region to be declared.

The Arctic

The Arctic is a 30 million square mile region that is home to millions of endemic species and human beings including the indigenous peoples of Alaska who consider Arctic waters sacred to their culture. This is a very fragile environment that contains 24 time zones. The Arctic is also rich in diamonds, nickel, iron ore, platinum, natural gas, and vast reserves of oil that have never been touched since the dawn of human civilization. It is estimated that underneath the Arctic wilderness is a fifth of the planet’s oil and natural gas reserves.

Receding Arctic sea ice

The Arctic Ocean has been covered by ice for the past 800,000 years. Sea ice reflects rays from the sun and contributes to cooling and a more stable weather system around the globe. The planet’s northern ice cap has been the subject of concern in the scientific community for the past three decades due to the alarming rate by which the sea ice cover is melting during the summer. Any significant change in Arctic sea ice would have drastic effects on Arctic species such as polar bears, walruses, and narwhals, and even humans will feel the brunt as well. There is not much biodiversity in the Arctic ecosystem. This simplicity makes it more vulnerable to and possibly unable to recover from any environmental intrusion.

The oil rush

There has been drilling going on for decades at the fringes of the region. But due to rising demands especially from developing countries in Asia, petroleum companies are even willing to risk more hazardous environments. Drilling involves removing icebergs and melting ice floes to make way for oil rigs. The risk of an oil spill is also very high. Today, global daily oil consumption amounts to 89 million barrels. Shell heads other petroleum giants such as BP, Exxon, Gazprom, Rosneft in this modern-day oil rush for 90 billion barrels or three years’ worth of oil.

Formerly off-limits, entry to the Arctic has been granted to Shell by the US government after almost 8 years of legal battles. Shell finally won, and is willing to spend billions in order to achieve its goal of dominating the petroleum industry in 10 to 20 years. Shell’s exploratory drilling in the Arctic commenced in July 2012. The year had been a challenging one for Shell as it encountered 40-mph winds and 35-foot waves and even had two drill ships grounded in the Gulf of Alaska.

The Arctic Council

The closest governing body that monitors human activity in the region is the Arctic Council, an intergovernmental organization composed of Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Russia and the United States. Environmentalists the world over are still optimistic that policy makers will choose wisely while weighing the risks.

Which is more valuable – oil or a pristine and unique ecosystem?

Photo Credit: Arctic Ice Melt

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