"Killer Whales Trapped in Ice of Hudson Bay"
"Inuit people call for Canadian government to send icebreaker to free pod of mammals that are struggling to surface for air."
Source: Guardian, 01/10/2013
Antarctica & Arctic
Shell's Arctic Oil Exploration Operation Faces Multiple Investigations
"ANCHORAGE -- As response teams continued Tuesday to evaluate Royal Dutch Shell's once-grounded oil drilling rig, the Coast Guard, the Obama administration and U.S. Sen. Mark Begich all announced investigations or reviews taking a close look at Shell":
Source: Anchorage Daily News, 01/09/2013
"Plan Approved To Tow Grounded Shell Drilling Rig To Safe Waters"
"ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Efforts to pull the Shell drilling rig Kulluk from its near-shore perch on rocks and gravel moved ahead mainly in secret Saturday, though officials disclosed Alaska has approved a tow plan to a temporary destination in nearby safe waters and that towing could be attempted at any time."
Source: Anchorage Daily News, 01/07/2013
Oil Rig off Alaska Is Damaged but Not Leaking: Shell, Coast Guard Say
"A Shell Oil drilling rig that ran aground in the Gulf of Alaska has incurred water damage to its deck and electrical systems but is otherwise stable, officials with the response team handling the accident said Thursday."
Source: NY Times, 01/04/2013
"Shell, Coast Guard Seek to Salvage Grounded Alaska Rig"
"The U.S. Coast Guard and Royal Dutch Shell were fighting 70 mile-per-hour winds and 40-foot swells as they tried to assess damage to a floating oil drilling ship that ran aground on a remote Alaskan island."
Source: Bloomberg, 01/03/2013
"Arctic Shipping Is Disaster Waiting To Happen, Safety Group Warns"
"Ferrying a load of soybeans from Seattle to China in 2004, the engine of Malaysian freighter Selendang Ayu lost power and the vessel broke in half on rocks off Unalaska Island in the middle of the Alaskan archipelago."
Source: LA Times, 12/11/2012
Polar Bear Scientist Cleared; Interior Dept. Still Under Openness Cloud
Five years after wildlife biologist Charles Monnett's 2006 observations of dead polar bears, believed to have drowned because of disappearing Arctic ice, Interior started an investigation of Monnett's science. The findings — partially published September 28, 2012 — were confused and contained no findings of scientific misconduct.
SEJ Publication Types:
Topics on the Beat:
Region:
Visibility:
SEJ Member Spotlight: Andrew Revkin
SEJ member, reporter and author Andrew Revkin is the senior fellow for environmental understanding at Pace University's Academy for Applied Environmental Studies and writes the award-winning Dot Earth blog for the Op-Ed side of The New York Times.
Visibility:
Interior Department Slow To Supply Safety Test Data in Shell Arctic Drilling Case
A retired University of Alaska professor, represented by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, went to court for the testing data on which Interior's Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement approval was based, after the agency violated the FOIA by not responding within the required 20-day period.
SEJ Publication Types:
Topics on the Beat:
Region:
Visibility:
Some Unpublished CRS Reports on Environmental Topics: Published
Topics of the latest reports, published by the Federation of American Scientists, include Arctic changes, mountaintop mining controversies, pollution control law enforcement, climate change, midnight rulemaking, scientific papers/security risks, oil sands enviro issues, and fracking/drinking water.
SEJ Publication Types:
Topics on the Beat:
Region:
Visibility:
Pages
