Jan 30
Troll A
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from Peru
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from Germany
seen from Italy
seen from Brazil
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from Brazil
seen from Singapore
seen from Germany
seen from United States
seen from Germany
seen from Italy
seen from China
seen from United States
Troll A
One of the world's largest oil companies is preparing to drill an exploratory deepwater oil well about 500 kilometres off the eastern coast
One of the world's largest oil companies is preparing to drill an exploratory deepwater oil well about 500 kilometres off the eastern coast of Newfoundland. ExxonMobil says the Stena Drillmax ship will drill a single well, which the company is calling Persephone, in about 3,000 metres of water. The well will be drilled in an area of the seabed called the Orphan Basin, which is north of the Flemish Pass Basin, where Equinor is considering developing the country's first deepwater oil production operation, called Bay du Nord.
Continue Reading.
People exposed to the chemical suffer coughing, wheezing and rashes, lawsuit says.
Excerpt from this Washington Post article:
Fearing the next spill, Arnesen joined a lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency, claiming that the agency has allowed 25 years to go by without updating the National Contingency Plan to respond to oil spills. On Monday, the University of California at Berkeley Environmental Law Center issued the agency a 60-day intent to sue notice on behalf of several groups and individuals “for failure to perform a non-discretionary duty” under the Clean Water Act.
In the absence of an update, the EPA has continued to allow emergency responders to use a chemical mixture called Corexit to disperse oil into droplets that allow microbes to further break it down, the groups say.
About 20 percent of nearly 5,000 Coast Guard personnel who responded to the BP spill and were exposed to the toxin reported persistent coughing. Others experienced wheezing and trouble breathing, according to a 2018 study commissioned by the National Institutes of Health.
“The combination of both oil and oil dispersants presented associations that were much greater in magnitude than oil alone for coughing, shortness of breath and wheezing,” the report said.
A Louisiana State University study two years prior reported a similar finding: that symptoms from exposure resulted in “burning in nose, throat or lungs, sore throat, dizziness and wheezing."
The other plaintiffs come from Alaska, where the Trump administration is pushing to open up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil leasing for the first time. They include an activist inletkeeper, a community group and an Inuit woman.
Day 1478 - I added a comment to the Federal Register on the proposed plan to open new coastal areas in the U.S. for offshore drilling. The open comment period goes through March 9th. Here's a blog post from Monterey Bay Aquarium with more information: https://futureoftheocean.wordpress.com/2018/01/15/action-alert-protect-americas-coasts-from-offshore-oil-drilling/
Megaproject off eastern Newfoundland may go into production as early as 2028
Federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault formally approved the Bay du Nord offshore oil megaproject Wednesday, making a decision that will infuriate environmentalists but boost the Newfoundland and Labrador economy.
In a statement Wednesday evening Guilbeault said he has determined that the project would not cause "significant adverse environmental effects" with the implementation of mitigation measures.
"We accept the conclusions of the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada on the Bay du Nord project," Guilbeault said while speaking with reporters.
Guilbeault said the decision was difficult to make, but pointed out that the project is subject to 137 conditions, including one that the project would have to meet net zero emissions by 2050.
[...]
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released a new report last week warning that the Paris Climate agreement goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 C above pre-industrial levels is all but out of reach. On Monday, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said investing in new fossil fuel infrastructure would be "moral and economic madness."
Furey said his government is still committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2050, but insisted Bay du Nord should be part of a transition to renewable energy. He also said he'd potentially support further projects by companies like ExxonMobil.
Continue Reading.
Tagging: @nlpolitics @politicsofcanada
Newfoundland offshore project has several parallels to oil project in Australia abandoned by Equinor in 2020
Months after the Bay du Nord offshore oil project in Newfoundland was approved by the federal government, environmental groups are continuing their campaign against the project, taking their fight to the courts and the company's offices in Norway.
Opponents of the project hope that Equinor, the company leading the project (oil major BP has a minority stake) will be especially sensitive to growing climate concerns over fossil fuel production, because it is a state-owned Norwegian company accountable to the country's citizens.
Equinor has yet to make a final investment decision on moving ahead, and environmental groups are focusing their efforts on that upcoming milestone. Led by environmental law charity Ecojustice, they have gone to federal court for a review of its environmental approval of the project.
"Our federal government says that it understands climate science," said Ian Miron, staff lawyer at Ecojustice. "So it should understand that Canada can't be a climate leader and approve fossil fuel infrastructure projects like this one."
Continue Reading.
Tagging: @politicsofcanada
“The Government of Canada believes that environmental assessments, which are based on science and meaningful consultations with Indigenous peoples and the public, are key to responsible resource development."
The Minister of Environment and Climate Change of Canada has approved three offshore projects following environmental assessments.
The BHP Canada Exploration Drilling Project, Central Ridge Exploration Drilling Project and West Flemish Pass Exploration Drilling Project have been allowed to proceed.
BHP Petroleum (New Ventures) Corporation, Equinor Canada, and Chevron Canada can now proceed with obtaining any additional authorisations and permits from federal departments, as well as the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board.
“The Government of Canada believes that environmental assessments, which are based on science and meaningful consultations with Indigenous peoples and the public, are key to responsible resource development. These resources projects will provide economic opportunities for many Canadians and the legally-binding conditions imposed throughout the life of the projects will protect the environment for generations to come,” said Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Environment and Climate Change.
Tagging: @politicsofcanada
The issue could bleed into 2020.
Excerpt from this Think Progress article:
South Carolina Rep. Joe Cunningham (D) is bringing his local fight against drilling in U.S. waters to Washington, D.C., with a bipartisan bill that would ban offshore drilling and seismic testing along both the East and West Coasts.
Cunningham’s bill introduced this week is part of an ever-growing bipartisan backlash to the Trump administration’s plans to open up the majority of U.S. waters to offshore drilling. Politicians from every single state along the Pacific and Atlantic coasts have voiced opposition to the proposal, setting up the dispute to be a dominant issue in the 2020 election.
The bill comes at the same time as President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Interior Department (DOI), David Bernhardt, is coming under increased scrutiny over the administration’s controversial plans to further expand offshore drilling.
Drilling has long been active off the Gulf Coast, but numerous accidents and oil spills over the years — which negatively impacted human health, local economies, and the environment — have made the issue a non-starter in other coastal states. Cunningham’s bill, the Coastal and Marine Economies Protection Act, seeks to prevent this happening on a wider scale.
Among the co-sponsors of the Coastal and Marine Economies Protection bill is Rep. Francis Rooney (R-FL). His support signals the political realities of offshore drilling in coastal states, even those led by Republicans who traditionally support fossil fuels. Rooney has critiqued his party many times for failing to acknowledge climate change and push for action to address the phenomenon.