climateadaptation:

Drilling will commence summer 2012 in the Chuckchi Sea, where Alaska and Russia meet. Environmental groups fume. Shell pleased. Rare species at risk.

Here is a round up:

• Approves former President Bush’s stalled plans to drill in Arctic
• Earth Justice sues
• Native Alaskans are pissed: “We have a right to life, to physical integrity, to security, and the right to enjoy the benefits of our culture. For this, we will fight, and this is why we have gone to court today. Our culture can never be bought or repaired with money. It is priceless,” Caroline Cannon, president of the Native Village of Point Hope, said in a press release.
• Shell Oil is pleased
• Crude prices drop
• Pew Center blasts Obama for politics over science stance, issues white paper
• University of Texas receives $5.6 million grant to study “safe oil extraction” without disturbing wildlife/ecosystems
• Home to thousands of rare species including bowhead, beluga, narwhals, and grey whales; ice, bearded, ribbon, and spotted seals; polar bears; puffins, auklets, sea ducks, and penguins; and cod, sharks, and eels.
• NASA reports sea-ice 2nd lowest levels ever recorded in the Chuckchi/Arctic
• National Snow & Ice Data Center: 40% lower than average ice extent - a loss the size of California, Alaska, Oregon, and Washington states combined