Right now Shell is trying to get approval from the US government to start Arctic drilling off the coast of Alaska this summer. This drilling will fuel further climate change, and wreck the pristine Arctic environment — a disaster for wildlife like its beautiful polar bears.
The Arctic is not only home to polar bears, but is a life support system for the planet — it cools our climate and regulates our weather systems. But over the last eight years, the ice has melted to record levels, and over the past thirty years, 75% of the summer sea ice has vanished. It's madness to continue to drill for the fossil fuels that are causing the Arctic to melt in the first place.
Without sea ice to hunt, rest, and breed, the very survival of polar bears and other wildlife is under threat. Mother polar bears will have trouble reproducing and their cubs will struggle to survive into adulthood. There is also a 75% chance of at least one major oil spill in Alaska — black oil seeping under the ice in this pristine environment would have a devastating impact on some of the world's only polar bears, unique narwhals, rare whales, and all those who call it home.
US president Barack Obama has the power to stop the drills — and Shell.
Arctic drilling isn't just an American issue. Tell President Obama to make the Alaskan Arctic off limits to oil drilling now.
Dear President Obama,
You have declared that "No challenge poses a greater threat to future generations than climate change" and showed leadership in vetoing the Keystone XL pipeline bill. Why then, would you allow Shell to drill in Arctic waters after a Nature study declared that Arctic Oil MUST be kept in the ground to prevent catastrophic climate change?
We call on your administration to protect the Arctic from offshore oil drilling and rescind Shell's Arctic drilling lease. The technology does not exist to clean up an oil spill in the Arctic Ocean, and Arctic oil must be left in the ground in order to avoid the catastrophic effects of climate change. The risks are simply too great to allow drilling in this fragile and important ecosystem.
[Your comments here]
You began your presidency with a catastrophic oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. Will you end it with an even worse disaster in the Arctic? The Obama administration should rescind Shell's current lease and make the Arctic off-limits to drilling in the next 5-Year Plan.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
