"The tension between conservation and oil and gas drilling is evident in the White House's new Arctic strategy paper. Shifting economic, climatic, and regulatory realities have contributed to what is at least a temporary pause in Arctic oil and gas drilling."
"For all the energy prospects bandied about concerning the Arctic – including a new White House strategy paper for the region – oil drilling in US Arctic waters has come to a temporary pause.
Three major oil companies with operations in the region have pulled out for the year, citing harsh weather and regulatory difficulties.
Home to an estimated 13 percent of the world's undiscovered oil resources and 30 percent of undiscovered natural gas, the Arctic is sure to lure them back. How they return is crucial. If energy companies can show it's possible to recover those resources responsibly, it will have enormous consequences – for those companies' balance sheets, for the diplomatic relations of the eight nations whose borders fall within the Arctic circle, and for the health of the planet."
David J. Unger reports for the Christian Science Monitor May 13, 2013.
SEE ALSO:
"US Unveils Arctic Strategy, But Is It Keeping Pace With Other Countries?" (Christian Science Monitor)
"Kerry Meets Swedish Officials in Advance of Arctic Talks" (Bloomberg)
"Nations Ponder How To Handle Busier, More Polluted Arctic" (ClimateWire)
"America's First Climate Refugees" (Guardian)
"Arctic Body Comes In From the Cold" (Wall St. Journal)
"Critics Lukewarm On US Plans in Arctic" (AP)
"Arctic Policy at a Thaw Point" (The Age)
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