“The Obama Administration should put Shell out of its misery. They have wasted billions on the hunt for unburnable carbon and wreaked havoc on everything they come in contact with in their Arctic exploits. This is obviously a disappointing approval, but at least the Administration made it clear that Shell cannot actually drill for oil until or unless the Fennica, its latest piece of damaged equipment, makes it back from repairs in Portland. Even then, they will need another permit from the administration. Now all eyes are on Portland as Kayakativists converge on the City of Roses for Round 2 of the People vs. Shell.”Stephen Kretzmann, Executive Director of Oil Change International
Powerful image of a dolphin looking up at an oil rig supply ship
The Department of Interior has approved 2 permits clearing the way once again for risky drilling in the Arctic ocean. The fate of the critical and pristine Arctic has been placed in the hands of Shell. The blame will be squarely on Obama if anything goes wrong with this stupid approval of Shell drilling permits. He has done so much good on climate and one blunder will erase that legacy. For the biosphere it could be game over.
According to BSEE(Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement) has approved conditional approval of two Applications for Permits to Drill to conduct limited exploratory drilling activities in the Chukchi Sea.
Shell currently is not permitted to drill into oil-bearing zones because, to do so, BSEE requires that a capping stack be on hand and deployable within 24 hours. A capping stack is a critical piece of emergency response equipment designed to shut in a well in the unlikely event of a loss of well control. Shell’s capping stack is staged on the vessel M/V Fennica, which is currently en route to Portland, Oregon, for repairs. If and when the M/V Fennica is capable of being deployed in the Chukchi Sea and Shell is able to satisfy the capping stack requirement, the company may submit an Application for Permit to Modify the APDs and request to have this restriction reconsidered.snip
The APDs were approved only after careful review of the adequacy of Shell’s ice management plans in the absence of the M/V Fennica as well as the consistency of the plans with protections in place for marine mammals. In addition to redundancy provided by other ice management support vessels, Shell will employ aerial reconnaissance over flights, satellite imagery and other measures to monitor ice floes to fulfill the operational goals of the ice management plan in terms of early detection and site safety. The use of these enhanced technologies will allow Shell to meet its operational requirements for ice management, while conforming to the Hanna Shoal Walrus Use Area restrictions identified by the USFWS.
Both of Shell's drill rigs are on their way to the Chukchi sea at this very moment. The drill sites are on the ocean floor in about 130 feet of water. Hydrocarbon zones are about 8,000 feet below the ocean bottom.Top-hole work consists of drilling to about 1,300 feet and setting the foundation for a well to grow. Work starts with digging a mud-line cellar which is an excavation that allows a blowout preventer to sit beneath the ocean floor. According to Shell, top-hole work accounts for about half the time it takes to drill a complete exploratory well.
Shell had hoped to drill two wells at the same time. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service requires a minimum of 15 miles between drill sites to avoid significant effects on walrus. Shell's two drill sites are closer than that.
So here we are. Hopefully the Fennica will not be repaired in time to allow Shell to dill deep enough into the sea floor to tap the oil. But this approved drilling will stress an already stressed ecosystem suffering from ocean acidification and loss of sea ice, fishing and trawling with nets. Keep the oil in the fracking ground. Hello Portland, how does kayak activism sound?