Oil exploration in the arctic imperial college london. The healy seamount is a stunning find that rises more than 3000 meters off the ocean floor. Trump says the atlantic, arctic could soon be open to oil. Within ten years, we could see the beginning of oil production that could last. Most of the oil comes from the north slope, referring to the land adjacent. Shell to suspend oil exploration in alaskan arctic. What are the pros and cons of oil and gas exploration in. Oil production in the arctic national wildlife refuge. Offshore drilling for crude oil or natural gas in arctic conditions has many. Oil wells, natural gas drilling, and exploration for oil and other fossil fuels. The arctic is one of the most remote and uncharted areas of the world.
An exploration well in the norwegian barents sea is used as a. By looking at the pros and cons of drilling for it, we can determine if this is something that makes sense to do. Currently, no offshore oil and gas drilling is taking place in the canadian arctic. Barriers to their development in the outer continental shelf, arctic. Exxon mobil, bp suspend canadian arctic exploratory. These pollutants can form a haze, or smog, in the air and contribute to the formation of acid rain. Offshore hydrocarbon resources in the arctic february 2016 6. Most of the information on their exploration of the polar regions survives in the sagas and a few other written sources. That equates to about 34 billion barrels of crude in the u. It would lessen our dependence on foreign oil, especially in the middle east.
In 2016, the government of canada, along with the united states, imposed a fiveyear moratorium on. The coming age of arctic oil and gas development arctic. The white house is making a bid to overturn the obama administrations fiveyear plan forbidding oil and gas exploration in the arctic and atlantic oceans and will examine opportunities to. Shell drops arctic oil exploration scientific american. A history of oil in the arctic today in alaska, the vast majority of oil from the states arctic region comes from onshore drilling wells.
Obama withdraws parts of atlantic, arctic from oil exploration. This paper addresses how risks to the environment in the arctic are handled in decisions regarding the exploration for petroleum resources. It was founded as a common platform for industrial and technical services providers, research. The oil ministry is offering 93 blocks in the barents sea, entirely in the. The nature of exploration is you cant write off a basin on the.
However, recent technological developments, as well as relatively high oil prices, have allowed for. The disadvantages of oil drilling in alaska sciencing. These satellite images of a small part of the arctic national wildlife refuge show the site of what, so far, is the only oil well ever drilled in the refuge, an exploratory well known as kic1. Media coverage of the arctic national wildlife refuge drilling. It refers to the historical period during which mankind has explored the region north of the arctic circle. Fish and wildlife services arctic national wildlife refuge, the machinery and equipment that workers use for drilling oil release an array of harmful air pollutants, including methane, particulate matter and nitrogen oxides. Norway has awarded 24 oil and gas exploration licenses, most located in the arctic barents sea, as it tries to encourage development of oil reserves in its northern regions, however analysts are. The pros and cons of oil drilling has been a debatable topic since a long time. Norway opens up record 93 blocks for arctic oil exploration.
Oil drilling in alaska pros and cons vision launch media. Arctic oil drilling given final approval by obama administration. Should drilling for oil in the arctic national wildlife refuge anwr. Heres what oil drilling looks like in the arctic refuge. Native corporation makes move toward exploring for oil in. Shell abandons oil exploration in alaska but stays in the. Shell says it will abandon oil exploration in alaska arctic. Shell submits a plan for new exploration of alaskan arctic oil. The arctic is more than 1,000 miles from the nearest coast guard base. Shell submits a plan for new exploration of alaskan arctic oil shells arctic challenger at the port of bellingham in washington. If shell finds oil, it and other oil companies will return to the arctic for additional exploration in the future. The norwegian government is being sued by climate activists over a decision to open up areas of the arctic ocean for oil exploration, a move they say endangers the lives of existing and future. Greenlanders divided on arctic oil, gas exploration. Congress, office of technology assessment,oil production in the arctic national wildlife refuge.
Should drilling for oil in the arctic national wildlife refuge anwr be allowed. Offshore drilling and potential impacts on alaska sciencebuzz. Norway sued over arctic oil exploration plans oil the. The decision by the interior departments bureau of ocean energy management removes a major obstacle to shells yearslong effort to begin oil and gas operations in u. Polar exploration in the arctic and antarctic weareteachers. This will bring about a reduction in the price of oil that. Bp frozen out of arctic oil drilling race the guardian. Polar exploration in the arctic and antarctic by guest blogger joann wasik at recently, i read a harrowing account of a doomed 1912 arctic expedition, where a ship seeking new hunting. Offshore shelf drilling operations in the arctic circle has become increasingly attractive to many oil and gas companies and investors. There may be vast reserves of oil, including shale oil that can be found in this wilderness. Russias offshore arctic oil exploration is sanctioned. Some are of the opinion that since oil is a basic necessity that is utilized for carrying out our daytoday activities, why not drill oil to meet our requirements, other than relying on foreign oil. Shell has prepared plans to resume drilling in arctic waters off.
Companies are exploring for minerals and oil and gas reserves. We are less than halfway through a history of arctic exploration when the pope. The vast arctic region is probably the last remaining unexplored source of hydrocarbons on the planet. Arctic oil spill response technology joint industry program. Jez averty, head of exploration in norway for statoil, says it took 33 wells before oil was found in the norwegian north sea. Countering listed pros for offshore drilling in alaskan waters or further. Recognizing the unique operating conditions in the arcticextreme environmental conditions, geographic remoteness, and the general absence of fixed infrastructure and existing. The arctic, which includes both the chukchi and beaufort seas, is estimated to contain at least 20% of the worlds undiscovered crude oil and natural gas. Final second supplemental environmental impact statement, boem. It is common knowledge that as crude oil prices continue to rise, cheaper alternatives must be explored and tested to eventually replace or reinforce our energy supply. The proceeds from drilling could dramatically lower the price of oil, leading to another economic boom. An oil industry consortium including exxon and bp has suspended its canadian arctic exploration program in the beaufort sea, citing insufficient time to begin test drilling before its lease. Oil and natural gas resources map of the arctic ocean. The united states geological survey estimates that over 87% of the arctics oil and natural gas resource about 360 billion barrels oil equivalent is located in seven.
As a result, the region has received significant interest from the petroleum industry since the onset of the 2010s oil glut in 2014, the commercial interest in arctic exploration has. Greenlanders divided on arctic oil, gas exploration the fastchanging world is in cringing on the arctic. Royal dutch shell has abandoned its arctic search for oil after failing to find enough crude in a move that will appease environmental campaigners and. The technology and the alaskan oil context, otae394 washington, dc. The northern alaska coastline lacks deepwater ports, major airports and the most basic infrastructure for spill. The argument for drilling in the arctic national wildlife refuge is economic. The worst journey in the world by apsley cherrygarrard, endurance. Bp has been forced to abandon hopes of drilling in the arctic, currently the centre of a new oil rush, owing to its tarnished reputation after the gulf of mexico spill the company confirmed. Arctic services is a joint initiative by companies and institutions in the akureyri region, in the north of iceland.
Asrc exploration is hoping to explore the arctic ocean for oil where shell left off. It wants to keep alive leases once held by shell in a promising offshore region where other discoveries were made. Denmark through greenland has not been a major player in. Shell abandons oil exploration in alaska but stays in the arctic. Where the arctic oil industry is booming bloomberg.
October 2014 the prospects and challenges for arctic oil development 2 between arctic states will be prerequisites for success. In the past three decades of oil exploration in the arctic, more than 200 billion barrels of oil have been. Candidates positions are categorized as pro yes, con no, not clearly. Arctic shell is preparing to lead a new oil rush in the american north this summer despite spill risks by nicola jones, nature magazine on june 26, 2012. The inuit circumpolar council icc, which represents 160 thousand inuit living in canada, greenland, alaska and russia, is developing a common position for future environmentally sensitive oil and gas. Pointing to the problems of other arctic oil drilling operations where drilling crews dumped garbage, sewage, and toxic drilling waste into surface pits. Rdsa conditional approval to drill for oil in the arctic ocean.
A history of oil in the arctic climate interpreter. The arctic zone that obama has withdrawn from oil leasing includes most of the chukchi sea and beaufort sea, and now totals 125 million acres. The exploration of the arctic for petroleum is considered to be extremely technically challenging. Shell has prospected for oil in alaskas arctic since the late 1980s but began its most recent push in 2005, as technology and melting ice caps have made the region more accessible. The pros and cons of oil drilling explained investment u. The three factors that would make the exploration of arctic reserves attractive to oil and gas companies are high commodity prices and technological feasibility, coupled with favorable. Most typically, offshore drilling sites are situated over the continental shelf, although. Oil drilling on alaskas north slope has disturbed some endangered species and made whaling harder, but it has not caused significant oil spills or a large decline in caribou, a scientific panel. Compared to other parts of the world, the level of exploration in the arctic has, by all accounts, been modest but more than. The earliest references to arctic exploration are shrouded in obscurity as a result both of inaccurate ideas of the shape of the earth and of primitive navigation. At the same time, environmental risks and popular opposition to oil and gas. If drilling for oil, or even exploration for oil, is allowed in the arctic or in any other areas in alaska, the damage could be irreparable. However, recent technological developments, as well as relatively high oil prices, have allowed for exploration.
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