White House to Suspend Arctic Oil Drilling
The Obama administration is suspending proposed exploratory drilling in the Arctic Ocean.
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar says in a report to be delivered to the White House on Thursday that he will not consider applications for permits to drill in the Arctic until 2011. Shell Oil is poised to begin exploratory drilling this summer on leases as far as 140 miles offshore.
An administration official familiar with the plan said Salazar wants to allow further study of proposed drilling technology and oil spill response capabilities in Arctic waters. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the plan is not yet public.
Salazar has said he wants to take a cautious approach in the Arctic.
President Obama ordered Salazar to conduct a review of the nation's offshore oil drilling safety after the Gulf of Mexico oil spill last month.
Special Section: Disaster in the Gulf
CBS News polls have shown that public support for increased oil drilling off the American coast fell sharply as the Gulf disaster unfolded, but has since leveled off.
Offshore Drilling Here to Stay, But Changes Loom
White House Still Open to Offshore Drilling
Debate Over Offshore Drilling
In March, Obama and Salazar canceled a planned 2011 lease sale in Alaska's Bristol Bay, where oil development was proposed by the Bush administration. They canceled four scheduled lease sales in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas and said no additional leases would be offered there until more scientific data are collected.
An administration official said Salazar believes that fisheries, tourism and environmental values in Bristol Bay make the area inappropriate for oil and gas drilling.
Shell, which has leases in both the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas, had sought to begin drilling five exploratory wells in those areas this summer. Salazar's announcement means those wells will not be considered until 2011.
Salazar also is directing the U.S. Geological Survey to conduct an independent evaluation of oil spill risks and spill response capabilities in the state.
Shell Oil, the U.S. arm of Royal Dutch Shell PLC, has the backing of Alaska's political leaders. With few exceptions, they support offshore drilling, a stance articulated by former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the 2008 GOP nominee for vice president.
About 90 percent of Alaska's general fund revenue comes from the petroleum industry. State leaders look to offshore oil to provide jobs and keep the trans-Alaska pipeline from running dry.
CBS/AP Interior Secretary Ken Salazar says in a report to be delivered to the White House on Thursday that he will not consider applications for permits to drill in the Arctic until 2011. Shell Oil is poised to begin exploratory drilling this summer on leases as far as 140 miles offshore.
An administration official familiar with the plan said Salazar wants to allow further study of proposed drilling technology and oil spill response capabilities in Arctic waters. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the plan is not yet public.
Salazar has said he wants to take a cautious approach in the Arctic.
President Obama ordered Salazar to conduct a review of the nation's offshore oil drilling safety after the Gulf of Mexico oil spill last month.
Special Section: Disaster in the Gulf
CBS News polls have shown that public support for increased oil drilling off the American coast fell sharply as the Gulf disaster unfolded, but has since leveled off.
Offshore Drilling Here to Stay, But Changes Loom
White House Still Open to Offshore Drilling
Debate Over Offshore Drilling
In March, Obama and Salazar canceled a planned 2011 lease sale in Alaska's Bristol Bay, where oil development was proposed by the Bush administration. They canceled four scheduled lease sales in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas and said no additional leases would be offered there until more scientific data are collected.
An administration official said Salazar believes that fisheries, tourism and environmental values in Bristol Bay make the area inappropriate for oil and gas drilling.
Shell, which has leases in both the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas, had sought to begin drilling five exploratory wells in those areas this summer. Salazar's announcement means those wells will not be considered until 2011.
Salazar also is directing the U.S. Geological Survey to conduct an independent evaluation of oil spill risks and spill response capabilities in the state.
Shell Oil, the U.S. arm of Royal Dutch Shell PLC, has the backing of Alaska's political leaders. With few exceptions, they support offshore drilling, a stance articulated by former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the 2008 GOP nominee for vice president.
About 90 percent of Alaska's general fund revenue comes from the petroleum industry. State leaders look to offshore oil to provide jobs and keep the trans-Alaska pipeline from running dry.
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?We will promote these values above all by living them -- through our fidelity to the rule of law and our Constitution??
What, pray tell, would you know about the Constitution? Who?s Constitution are you referring to sir? It most certainly is not the United States Constitution.
The fact is that you, Mr. Obama, are extreme: In-your-face-Healthcare, Unaccountable Communist Loving Czars, Boldface Lies, Race-baiting, personal attacks on American Citizens who disagree with you and your Democrat Party, calling Tax Paying Natural Born American Citizens ?nazi?s?, attempting to cover-up or dismiss 8 terrorist attacks or attempted attacks since you stepped into the ?Office of the President?, and your fawning media that is complacently, treacherously, allowing these things to pass unquestioned, unanswered?
Moreover, it is the Democrats that ?should not be elected to any public office?, EVER! Mr. Obama and the Democrat Party are the ones with the extreme views. Democrat Party is the one who acts like nazi?s. The DemoNazi Party is the one attacking the U.S. Constitution, The DemoNazi Party wants to control free speech, The DemoNazi Party attacks the Constitutional Right to Bear Arms, The DemoNazi Party wants unfettered control of individuals lives, The DemoNazi Party ?thinks? that it can make decisions for individuals better than they themselves can. All the while you are happy to see the United States Constitution eroded, year by year, decade by decade, making political fodder out of each issue until you have the Natural Born U.S. Citizens up to their chins in fodder. We have had quite enough. Each generation has a task. This generation?s task will be to RIGHT the ship that has been listing for nearly one hundred years. That ship is the U.S. Constitution. The Natural Born Citizens are awake to the water in the bilge. YOUR party, Mr. Obama, is the water in the bilge and we have our teacups ready to bale. No federal program is more sacred than the Constitution. It is Un-American and akin to treason to trample on the Constitution. It is time to get back to the basics of the U.S. Constitution. There is no need to prove you are a Natural Born Citizen anymore. That time has passed. It is now IMPEACHMENT time for treasonous acts against the United States, the U.S. Constitution and the American People, and failure to adhere to the Presidential Oath of Office.
Your "precious" republican party created a never-ending nightmare in this country that you are apparently willing to overlook or too dumb to figure out on your own. (I vote the latter).
Proactive, no notice US government inspections with zero tolerance for safety and compliance deviations.
No more excuses.