GreenWatch

B. McPherson Greenpeace activists made a couple of bold moves this week in their efforts to save the Arctic from oil pollution. They have boarded two vessels that were on their way to drill during the short Arctic summer. The drill rig GSP Saturn was boarded when it was in a Netherlands harbour, preventing its departure to drill for the Russian firm Gazprom. You may remember that when the Greenpeace activists attempted to board a drill rig once it was drilling in the Arctic, they were arrested and their ship was impounded. Many were kept in questionable circumstances until Russian president Putin pardoned them just before the Winter Olympics and just before seizing the Crimean Peninsula. This time, the move was made in Europe where the courts are more hospitable to defenders of the environment. The other vessel boarded was the Norwegian Transocean Spitsbergen owned by Statoil. It is stationed in the Barents Sea. It is believed that a bonanza of oil lies beneath the A...

B. McPherson The Arctic and Antarctic are Earth's air conditioners. The European Parliament passed a resolution on March 12 to promote better protection of the north Polar region. Part of the resolution recommends a sanctuary in the Arctic Ocean around the N. Pole. It recommends limits on commercial fishing and also means to keep oil pollution from the pristine waters. There is no enforcement of this resolution, but it points out the concern that more people each day have over the fate of the polar region. Keeping the oil rigs out of the Arctic will be difficult. There is likelihood that huge oil reserves lie under the Arctic Ocean. Oil exploration has been taking place in Greenland’s territorial waters as well as offshore Alaska and Russia. Last year Greenpeace activists attempted to board an oil platform in Russian controlled waters and were arrested and held in a Siberian jail before being moved to St. Petersburg jails. Eventually they were released when the world b...

B. McPherson Greenpeace ship in international waters being boarded by Russians The following is copied from a Greenpeace email. Big news! The Arctic 30 have been granted amnesty. Earlier today the Russian government agreed to amend an amnesty bill to include the Arctic 30, and just now the bill was officially adopted by their parliament. This means legal proceedings against them will be halted and they should be home soon. I can almost hear the collective sigh of relief, but the Arctic 30 have said they’re not celebrating. They’ve all spent two months in jail for a crime they didn’t commit, and faced criminal charges that were absurd. As Pete Willcox, captain of the Arctic Sunrise, said: “There’s no amnesty for the Arctic.” By accepting the amnesty they are not admitting guilt, and once they have the necessary exit visas, they should be home with their families. When that will be is still in the hands of the Russian authorities, but I’m keeping my fingers cross...

B. McPherson Amid accidents and safety violations Shell pulls out of Arctic Shell Oil has announced that it will not be drilling for oil in the Alaskan Arctic this summer. They have exploration leases in the Arctic in the Chukchi Sea. They had trouble with an oil drillship that was being towed to Seattle for refurbishment when the tow lines snapped in rough seas. It subsequently grounded on an island and there were fears that it would spill its oil used for ballast. Eventually the Noble Discoverer was towed south for repairs. Shell has decided to send it to Korea for repairs and it will not be ready to deploy this summer.  Drilling for petroleum is ramping up as the Arctic warms. It is believed that large pools of oil lie beneath the polar region. Environmentalists have warned about the dire consequences should a spill occur in these waters. It’s a rule of thumb that the colder the water, the harder it is to retrieve the pollution. In addition to probable ...

B. McPherson Snowy owls are visiting from the Arctic. Snowy owls have been  spotted on Vancouver Island and points south. This has the bird watchers all aflutter as these beautiful birds belong in the Arctic. They are adapted for life on the tundra with their thick feather coats and their white spotted camouflage. I haven’t seen any of the interlopers as of yet, but they have appeared during the day and in unexpected places. Vancouver Island is mostly snow free through the winter and trees are abundant. This seems to confuse the birds as they are not used to trees. They have even been sighted perching on the railings of the ferry that plies between the mainland and the island. This is the second year that snowies have been showing up this far south. Last year large numbers flew south across the continent. It was surmised that they were looking for food. There had been a couple of good years for the lemming population in the Arctic and the snowies benefitted from an...