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Antarctica to Melt Without Curbs on Fossil Fuels, Study Finds

Burning all the Earth’s remaining coal, oil and natural gas would trigger enough warming to melt the entire Antarctic ice shelf, eventually obliterating coastal regions around the world, researchers said in a report Friday. That worst-case scenario would be a long way off — several thousand years, according to computer simulations published by the journal Science Advances. Still, the results are a reminder of the potentially cataclysmic impacts of an Antarctic meltdown, according to the German, U.S. and U.K. researchers. About 1 billion people live in coastal areas that would be swamped if the entire ice sheet was lost, they said. “The west Antarctic ice sheet may already have tipped into a state of unstoppable ice loss, whether as a result of human activity or not,” Anders Levermann, of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, said in a statement. “If we want to pass on cities like Tokyo, […]

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Melting Ice Isn’t Opening Arctic to Oil Bonanza

Photo An Orthodox cross in Teriberka, Russia, a poor village on the Barents Sea that the Kremlin had hoped would be a hub for the expanded operations of its energy giant, Gazprom. But despite the melting ice, getting oil and gas out of the Arctic remains a daunting challenge. Credit James Hill for The New York Times TERIBERKA, Russia — The warming Arctic should already have transformed this impoverished fishing village on the coast of the Barents Sea. The Kremlin spent billions in the last decade in hopes of turning it into a northern hub of its global energy powerhouse, Gazprom. It was once the most ambitious project planned in the Arctic Ocean, but now there is little to show for it aside from a shuttered headquarters and an enormous gravel road carved out of the windblown coastline like a scar. “There are plans,” said Viktor A. Turchaninov, the […]

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Shell president: ‘Oil will be required for a long time’

The president of Shell Oil Co. said exploratory drilling off Alaska’s northwest coast is going well despite stormy weather last week that caused the company to halt operations for a few days. And in an interview this week with The Associated Press Marvin Odum said he expects further protests against the company’s plans for Arctic drilling like the ones in Seattle and Portland where activists in kayaks tried to block Shell vessels. Arctic offshore drilling is bitterly opposed by environmental groups that say a spill cannot be cleaned in ice-choked waters and that industrial activity will harm polar bears, walrus and ice seals already harmed by diminished sea ice. In Seattle, Shell faced protests on the water by “kayaktivists” upset over the company staging equipment in the city. In Portland, Oregon, Greenpeace USA protesters hung from the St. Johns Bridge to delay a Shell support vessel, from heading to […]

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Obama wants new $1 billion Arctic icebreaker by 2020

Obama is expected to say that the government should buy a heavy icebreaker by 2020, when routine Arctic marine transit is expected, instead of the previous goal of 2022. He also will propose to start planning for additional icebreakers. The White House said the move is required for safety in the changing Arctic and to keep up with Russia. The U.S. Coast Guard used to have seven icebreakers, but the fleet has dwindled to three creaky vessels, only one of which is a heavy duty vessel, the White House said. “Russia, on the other hand, has 40 icebreakers and another 11 planned or under construction,” the White House said. During the past year, Obama has taken steps to seal off parts of Alaska from new drilling, but environmental groups have strongly criticized a recent decision to allow Royal Dutch Shell to drill off the northwest coast of the state. […]

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Alaska seeks balanced energy agenda

Alaska facing a mutlimillion dollar deficit as most oil pipelines running far below peak capacity. Photo by Heather Snow/Shutterstock ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Sept. 1 (UPI) — Alaska needs to exploit its vast natural resources, but do so in a way that heeds the growing threats of climate changes, the state’s lieutenant governor said. President Barack Obama is in Alaska touting the dual agenda of taking the steps needed to slow the impacts of climate change while ensuring state revenue from the oil and gas industry remains durable. Obama’s plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions while at the same time signing off on arctic drilling permits for Royal Dutch Shell has earned both praise and condemnation. Speaking at an Alaskan arctic conference in Anchorage, Lt. Gov. Byron Mallott said the state needs to exploit the oil and gas resources it has, but in a way that recognizes the industry’s impact on […]

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Obama to Call for More Icebreakers in Arctic as U.S. Seeks Foothold

ANCHORAGE — President Obama on Tuesday will propose speeding the acquisition and building of new Coast Guard icebreakers that can operate year-round in the nation’s polar regions, part of an effort to close the gap between the United States and other nations, especially Russia, in a global competition to gain a foothold in the rapidly changing Arctic. On the second day of a three-day trip to Alaska to highlight the challenge of climate change and call for a worldwide effort to address its root causes, Mr. Obama’s proposals will touch on one of its most profound effects. The retreat of Arctic sea ice has created opportunities for shipping, tourism, mineral exploration and fishing — and with it, a rush of marine traffic that is bringing new difficulties. “Arctic ecosystems are among the most pristine and understudied in the world, meaning increased commercial activity comes with significant risks to the […]

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U.S. Is Seen as Laggard as Russia Asserts Itself in Warming Arctic

Continue reading the main story Slide Show Slide Show|9 Photos A New Race for the Arctic A New Race for the Arctic CreditRuth Fremson/The New York Times ABOARD COAST GUARD CUTTER ALEX HALEY, in the Chukchi Sea — With warming seas creating new opportunities at the top of the world, nations are scrambling over the Arctic — its territorial waters, transit routes and especially its natural resources — in a rivalry some already call a new Cold War. When President Obama travels to Alaska on Monday, becoming the first president to venture above the Arctic Circle while in office, he hopes to focus attention on the effects of climate change on the Arctic. Some lawmakers in Congress, analysts, and even some government officials say the United States is lagging behind other nations, chief among them Russia , in preparing for the new environmental, economic and geopolitical realities facing the […]

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Statoil’s Polarled pipeline becomes first to cross Arctic Circle

Norwegian energy company Statoil passes Arctic Circle during construction phase of new Polarled natural gas pipeline. Image courtesy of Statoil. STAVANGER, Norway, Aug. 21 (UPI) — Norwegian energy company Statoil said Friday a pipelaying vessel passed a milestone with construction of the Polarled gas pipeline crossing the Arctic Circle. "The Polarled gas pipeline crossed 66 degrees and 33 minutes north of the equator and became the first pipeline to cross the Arctic Circle," the company said in a statement. "This pipeline will open an entirely new gas highway from the Norwegian Sea to Europe." Statoil started the process of laying the 300-mile long pipeline from the Aasta Hansteen natural gas field in the Norwegian Sea in March. Its aim is to cross the Arctic Circle to a gas processing plant in the northwest of the country. It’s the first large-diameter pipeline of its kind to be placed in waters […]

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Make Shell disclose offshore drilling risks, Senate members demand

Eleven US Senate Democrats and Independent Bernard Sanders (Vt.) asked the US Securities and Exchange Commission to make Royal Dutch Shell PLC disclose to the public and investors inherent risks offshore oil drilling poses if there is a spill or other environmental accident. They said in an Aug. 18 letter to SEC Chair Mary Jo White that Shell “provided investors with boilerplate generalities about the potential for an accident and insisted that the company has a sufficient plan for response and clean-up” following problems it encountered drilling off Alaska in 2012. Saying they are worried that other companies drilling for oil and gas on the US Outer Continental Shelf also haven’t disclosed potential risks of drilling off the US Gulf, Atlantic, and Pacific coasts as well as in the Arctic, the senators asked that the SEC fully review the companies’ plans. “America has never been more energy secure with […]

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Clinton splits from Obama over offshore oil drilling in Arctic

Sign up for quick access to a wealth of global business news, including: Clinton splits from Obama over offshore oil drilling in Arctic Newspaper + Premium online Newspaper + Premium online Premium Full FT.com subscription Premium Full FT.com subscription Standard Full news & archive Standard Full news & archive Trial Try Premium online Trial Try Premium online Price Monthly Annual $66.30 $11.77 per week $53.00 $9.25 per week $36.00 $6.45 per week $1.00 for 4 weeks $1.00 for 4 weeks FT Alphaville plus selected FT blogs yes yes yes yes Unlimited FT.com article access yes yes yes yes Unlimited mobile and tablet access yes yes yes yes Unlimited fast FT yes yes yes yes 5 year company financials archive yes yes yes yes The LEX column yes yes no yes ePaper access yes yes no yes Three exclusive weekly emails yes yes no yes Daily newspaper delivery yes no […]

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