The Pros And Cons Of Arctic Oil Drilling

An Arctic oil drilling project has recently been approved despite the devastating impact it would have on the environment. Oil drilling releases excessive amounts of carbon dioxide into the air, which is the leading cause of arctic ice melting and global warming. As a result of melting ice, arctic wildlife will be heavily impacted due to habitat loss and potential oil spills The devastating effects of this oil drilling project could be easily prevented by using one of the many types of renewable energy sources. Oil companies should not be allowed to drill for oil in the arctic because the carbon emissions are melting the arctic, destroying the habitats of arctic wildlife, and because there are so many alternative renewable energy sources that

An oil development project in Alaska has recently been approved despite the devastating impact it will have on the environment. Zach Brown and Bill McKibben wrote about the project in a Los Angeles Times article “an oil development on Alaska's North Slope that Interior says would release as much as 284 million metric tons of carbon dioxide over its 30-year lifetime, and perhaps more” (Brown and McKibben). The Arctic is responsible for regulating most of the earth's temperatures as ice from arctic regions reflects sunlight into the atmosphere and back into space. However, as the ice melts that light is absorbed into the ocean causing the earth's temperatures to rise and causing the arctic to melt faster. Each decade the ice in the arctic decreases by at least 3% and it is presumed that if the amount of carbon emissions continues to rise all the ice in the arctic will have melted by 2050 (Global Climate Change). The approved project will release dangerous amounts of carbon emissions into the atmosphere and by the time the thirty-year project is finished, the Arctic may be ice-free. Overall, as more carbon emissions are being released into the atmosphere the Arctic is melting rapidly and increasing global

Oil drilling can harm arctic wildlife in many ways. In an article written by the ocean conservancy, the author writes “Animals dependent on sea ice habitats—like walruses, polar bears, and certain species of Arctic seals—will face great challenges as sea ice continues to decrease in this region” (Protecting the Arctic). Some of these challenges include starvation and habitat loss which could lead to mass endangerment for many ice-dependent species. Oil drilling also poses the huge threat of oil spills, which are nearly impossible to clean in the arctic. In an article by ocean conservancy, it is stated “So how likely is a spill to happen? Well, according to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), there’s a 75% chance of one or more large spills over the lifetime of development and production in the Chukchi Sea. And the agency admits that a very large oil spill could result in the death of large numbers of polar bears, bowhead whales, seals, and sea birds” (Protecting the Arctic). Oil spills have a devastating impact on the environment, oil gets into the fur of marine mammals and will take away their ability to insulate themselves. Arctic oil drilling should be stopped due to its threats to arctic