Shell's Arctic drill plan has too many holes - Rick Steiner at the Anchorage Daily News

[Blue_In_AK]

http://www.adn.com/2012/07/16/2544429/shells-arctic-drill-plan-has-too.html

After years of complaining that the environmental community, North Slope residents and the Obama administration are delaying its Arctic Ocean drilling projects, it is now apparent that Shell itself is not ready to drill.

Its oil spill response barge still has significant unresolved issues, and Shell recently asked for a variance to its air permit, proposing that it now be allowed to emit several times the amount of hazardous substances already permitted. If it wants a variance to important federal environmental regulations, Shell should have to go through the full public review and comment process prescribed by law.

<snip>

And in an ominous start to its Arctic program, just this weekend Shell had a serious failure of the anchoring system for its drill ship Noble Discoverer in Dutch Harbor, causing a near-grounding. This incident doesn't exactly inspire confidence in Shell's abilities to manage its aging drill ships (which it was furiously retrofitting in Seattle until just a few weeks ago).

We still have not seen independent analysis demonstrating that the wellhead-capping stack, intended to stop a blowout, works effectively. Shell has yet to demonstrate it can respond effectively to a large oil spill in sea ice, and there is still no Arctic Regional Citizens Advisory Council (RCAC) established to provide effective citizen oversight. And Shell still refuses to answer some very basic questions regarding its commitments on Arctic drilling, such as whether it will waive the existing $75 million spill liability cap (as BP rightfully did for its Gulf spill).

<snip>

Read more here: http://www.adn.com/2012/07/16/2544429/shells-arctic-drill-plan-has-too.html#storylink=cpy