Dear Obama: How Could You Approve Drilling in Arctic Ocean?

The statement criticizes the decision to allow oil drilling in the Arctic Ocean, highlighting the vulnerability of endangered species and Native subsistence communities. It argues that a spill would be catastrophic because the nearest coast guard station is over a thousand miles away and existing cleanup tests have been a "complete failure". The author calls for the President to use his authority to delay drilling until science proves that spills can be cleaned up safely.

• Oil drilling in the Arctic Ocean poses severe risks to endangered species, including polar bears, walrus, and bowhead whales, as well as to Native subsistence communities.
• The Arctic Ocean is ill-equipped for oil spill responses due to extreme weather and a lack of nearby infrastructure, with the closest coast guard station located more than a thousand miles away.
• Shell Oil intended to start drilling as early as Summer 2012, despite the fact that previous attempts to test oil cleanup in the Arctic Ocean were unsuccessful.

APA

Earthjustice (2011). Dear Obama: How Could You Approve Drilling in Arctic Ocean? https://earthjustice.org/article/dear-obama-how-could-you-approve-drilling-in-arctic-ocean

Chicago

Earthjustice. Dear Obama: How Could You Approve Drilling in Arctic Ocean? 2011. https://earthjustice.org/article/dear-obama-how-could-you-approve-drilling-in-arctic-ocean.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Earthjustice |title=Dear Obama: How Could You Approve Drilling in Arctic Ocean? |date=12 December 2011 |url=https://earthjustice.org/article/dear-obama-how-could-you-approve-drilling-in-arctic-ocean |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{earthjustice2011dear, author = {{Earthjustice}}, title = {{Dear Obama: How Could You Approve Drilling in Arctic Ocean?}}, publisher = {Earthjustice}, year = {2011}, month = dec, url = {https://earthjustice.org/article/dear-obama-how-could-you-approve-drilling-in-arctic-ocean}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }