Offshore Drilling in Arctic Banned
One of today’s most pressing environmental issues is the dwindling sea ice, the result of man-made global warming. In turn, the thinning Arctic ice has created new opportunities for oil companies to exploit the environment through offshore drilling. Previously, I wrote briefly about Shell’s expedition to the Arctic and strongly encouraged all my readers to sign the petition to put a stop to this catastrophe towards nature.
When I found out that President Obama had banned all offshore drilling in the Arctic until 2022, I was delighted. Despite being on his final leg as the President of the USA, he continues to work passionately for others and passed this important ruling on Arctic oil drilling. The ban is not permanent, but it gives us more time to find new sustainable energy alternatives. It also gives the planet a chance to heal.
As a Buddhist monk, I am not interested in politics. However, I am always happy to hear of actions that benefit others and I have great gratitude for President Obama’s decision to help our environment heal.
I’ve reposted the article below along with a few videos about the Arctic. I’ve always felt it is important to keep ourselves informed especially with issues concerning the world. We all live on the same planet, thus we all share the responsibility to protect it. I hope everyone develops a deep state of mindfulness in relations to our environment and realizes that with every action we take, it leaves a reaction, whether good or bad.
Tsem Rinpoche
President Obama Has Banned All Offshore Oil Drilling In Arctic
By Robin Andrews
With dark forces marshaling to move into the White House and tear apart Obama’s environmental legacy, he’s making sure that in the last few weeks of his Presidency that he can do all he can to protect it. His latest announcement is a rather substantial one – he has effectively banned offshore oil drilling in the ecologically sensitive Arctic until at least 2022.
The five-year-long program prevents any companies from extracting oil in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas, and puts a hold on any drilling expansion in the Pacific or Atlantic Oceans. Drilling will still be permitted in parts of the Gulf of Mexico, which means that this locale will be the only place that the US is significantly engaging in oil exploration.
“Given the unique and challenging Arctic environment and industry’s declining interest in the area, forgoing lease sales in the Arctic is the right path forward,” Interior Secretary Sally Jewell said, as reported by the Los Angeles Times.
This is a huge win for environmentalists, but it even makes sense on a purely economic level. Oil prices are in decline and renewable energy is becoming far cheaper. Market forces, let alone policy, will ensure that the future relies less on fossil fuels and more on low-carbon energy sources.
Under Obama, generally due to fluctuating market prices, oil production has risen, even as imports from other nations have fallen sharply. Reducing oil consumption is a key part of Obama’s Clean Power Plan (CPP), and this new action is partly designed to fulfill that target.
However, the CPP has been stayed by the Supreme Court, and it is likely to be abandoned under the incoming Trump administration. Many at this point are therefore greeting this new news with pessimism. After all, won’t Trump simply scrap the new offshore drilling restrictions too?
Well, he might want to, but it may be more difficult to achieve than he thinks.
Obama’s rescinding of permission for any more offshore drilling took effect immediately. Any reversal cannot legally be achieved straight away, and would likely take several years to unwind. Additionally, if the price of oil continues to remain at record-low values, then the industry simply doesn’t have an economic incentive to want to drill in the Arctic.
As for the CPP, it may not actually be active, but it’s already met its targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 2024 and curbing coal use by 2030. This is all thanks, again, to market forces determining that fossil fuels are on their way out and low-carbon energy sources are in.
If Trump continues to attempt to swim against this tide, he’ll find that it’ll cost the US far more than it does today.
Source: http://www.iflscience.com/environment/president-obama-banned-offshore-oil-drilling-arctic/
Do watch these short videos to learn more about Arctic oil drilling
Obama Administration Bans Arctic Drilling Until 2022
Or view the video on the server at:
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/oil-drilling-01.mp4
Why Big Oil takes Huge Risks in the Arctic
Or view the video on the server at:
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/oil-drilling-02.mp4
Older Arctic Sea Ice Disappearing
Or view the video on the server at:
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/oil-drilling-03.mp4
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Animals show love for humans! Cow, lions, apes, dogs, bears, parrots and more can all be very affectionate and show surprising emotions when it comes to expressing their love for people. An emotional animals hugging humans video.
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videouploads/comment-1546455946.mp4
You guys are going to have a cute attack with these two super adorable videos of Tsem Rinpoche’s doggies Oser and Dharma.-
https://youtu.be/JX1UdH7IjQ8
And
https://youtu.be/YGD7CtNmnuI
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Enjoy!
H.E. the 25th Tsem Rinpoche loves animals and is passionate against their harm, torture, and abuse.
The few minutes a day we spend on social media creating awareness for animals who cannot speak is purely spiritual and humanistic practice because we are trying to alleviate pain from another sentient beings and that makes us more spiritual, and that makes us more spiritual and more humane.
Market forces are always such that when the price of something goes up, then everyone runs to get a piece of it. So now is the time to look deeply into alternatives to fossil fuels and type of resources, before the price of oil rebounds for whatever good or bad ones.
Really Glad Obama made this happen in the last part of his presidency. Oil drilling does effect global warming and we need to move towards sustainability away from fossil fuels. We need to consider other species and the environment that sustains us. We push it too far and we could very well end up causing our own extiniction.
Thankful and appreciate Obama for for making the ban on offshore drilling in Arctic happened even in his last leg of presidential. Great effort to push it through as not many sees the importance of taking care of our environment. Many would prefer the to prioritise profit gaining and personal agenda. I hope the ban will continue till 2022 and more and no one will overturn the ruling on this due to their own political reason.
This shows how good Obama can be not only to Americans but also to the world. This last gasp order to this is one everyone in the world would appreciate because of the long term effect that it will have on the world’s ecosystem. How I wish Obama will stay in power for his administration is really making the necessary changes towards a better world. The world needs more leaders like Obama who promotes peace and conservation. Thank you for sharing this Rinpoche.
Wow, I just learnt that the Trump administration has allegedly ordered the US EPA (Environment Protection Agency) to cease releasing information to the public including press releases, blogs and social media activity, posting any new material to agency websites until further notice. Shortly after the inauguration, the administration issued a memo calling for agencies to immediately stop sending regulations to the Office of the Federal Register (OFR) until they have been approved by a Trump-appointed department or agency head.
Similar restrictions are reportedly in place at the US Dept. of Agriculture and the US Dept. of Health and Human Services. Trump administration has ordered a freeze on all EPA grants, along with a delay on regulations across the federal government.
Those in the chemical industry know that this may have many potential serious implications. These agency scientists carry out research in support of policies that protect health and safety and it makes no sense to put up walls between them and the public, or unilaterally halt the work they do.
The EPA, like all federal agencies, is funded by taxpayer dollars and people have the right to know what is being done to protect or harm public health and the environment. If this means the Trump administration will now want a say in every safety/health/environment regulation being passed, in every bit of funding that goes into enforcement and controls, if it means perhaps cutting funding for that purpose, if it means loosening the regulatory requirements to put products on the market since Trump is known to be pro-business, then in time to come it might turn the USA backward to become no better than any 3rd world country in safety/environment/health standards.
I say, let the experts do what they need to do. Don’t meddle in areas you have no clue about.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this article. Many might think that Arctic is so far away from us, things that happen there will not affect us directly. This environmental issue will affect everyone if we overlook its effect on the world. The people and animals that live in the Arctic depend on the unique ecosystem to survive. If oil companies start oil drilling in Arctic, there will be high possibility of oil spill because of fragile arctic ice & tricky weather condition. And history showed us that no oil companies ever successfully clean up major spill. Therefore, Obama’s ban on offshore drilling in Arctic till 2022 really demonstrated great leadership. We hope that arctic will be preserved and all people, animals and environment will be protected from all possible treats and pollutions.
It is wonderful to hear that even during his final few weeks as the President of the United States, President Barack Obama has not let that give him an excuse to not do something to help slow down global warming and to save the Artic Sea ice from disappearing forever. Barack Obama’s efforts towards helping to slow down global warming and trying to bring change towards all the negative actions we are doing that contribute towards damaging the Earth we live in is indeed something to admire.
As the new President of the Untied States, Donald Trump takes office, I hope that he will follow in the footsteps of President Barack Obama towards trying to put a stop to global warming instead of just harping over pointless petty issues.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this wonderful news!
I am really happy to hear how Barack Obama is trying to save the planet during his last few months as the president of the United States.
We all know that what we do now is what will affect our planet in future, by the time we realize that we have made a mistake it will be too late, that’s the reason why it is better to prevent something from happening rather than to wait for it to happen and then panic.
Oil drilling can have huge effects such as global warming, global warming will have a domino effect that could have a huge impact on the world that we live in. When a chunk of see ice melts the sea warms up because less light is reflected and absorbed[from the ice] that in turn causes other ice to melt faster and soon enough the change can be detected, global warming is dangerous and if not stopped it can end all life on our planet.
I really hope that Obama’s ban can help slow down and stop global warming before it is too late.
Within hours of taking the oath of office last Friday, President Trump started work by repealing one of Obama’s flagship policies, The Affordable Care Act, i.e. Obamacare. Who knows what other policies he might want to reverse during his tenure. Hopefully not this one. US Fiscal Policy direction under Trump has been rather murky up till now.
The price of crude oil is not due to demand dropping. Prices rise or fall depending on when OPEC and non-OPEC producers agree to increase or cut output, affecting crude inventories which in turn affects price.
Oil companies, being oil companies, would be desperate to tap on the last of the remaining oil reserves of the world, said to become exhausted in 53 years. That does not seem sustainable, so why don’t they instead begin to invest in research for more renewable energy sources and not wait till the last minute? That would be a more sustainable option since they will be forced to anyway, as the reserves dry out.
Gulf of Mexico oil spill of 2010 – https://global.britannica.com/event/Deepwater-Horizon-oil-spill-of-2010
Guess Obama learned from the mistakes of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. The far reaching consequences. The cause and effect and the ripple effect. Obama is working to ensure that another major disaster is not sitting in the wings to come on. As mentioned in the article, the environment in the arctic is harsh and coupled with dwindling supplies with low prices, it is the right time for Obama to act. Of course, this is a relief to environmentalists as this will mean that the environment will not have the chance to be polluted and destroyed. Already the arctic is suffering from global warming.
Time for the world to move on and look an alternate sources of energy. Though the search has been on for some time now, there was no really push to develop it. Hopefully, this will be the impetus that the world needs to clean up its act and get serious about alternate energy source.
Thank you for drawing attention to this cause and may the next generation reap its rewards.
As reported by BBC News on 6/1/2017, Huge Antarctic iceberg poised to break away
( http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-38522954).
“…As it floats on the sea, the resulting iceberg from the shelf will not raise sea levels. But if the shelf breaks up even more, it could result in glaciers that flow off the land behind it to speed up their passage towards the ocean. This non-floating ice would have an impact on sea levels.
According to estimates, if all the ice that the Larsen C shelf currently holds back entered the sea, global waters would rise by 10cm.”
Country like Holland has already build massive sea wall, just imagine Holland will completely cover by seawater from the chain effect from the melting of iceberg.
I hope new technology that makes hybrid and 100% electric cars will completely take over the market and become the mainstream in next 10 years. Governments plays a vital role in preserving our environments by putting new regulations and policies in place.
An altruistic and compassion world leader, like Former President Obama, always make a stand for the betterment of mankind and the world at large. Mr. Obama is a peace loving President who cares.
Another executive directive he executed before handing over the US Presidential office was to have interest rate reduced on housing loans to benefit the American people.
Sad to say, on the very first day of his inauguration, I read from the financial time, this interest rate reduction had been revoked by the new president. What a shame.
May the ban on Offshore Drilling in Arctic be in place until the world recuperates.
The global warming has become alarming and at risks. Arctic drilling could speed up global warming and harm endangered wildlife in the Arctic. Its good that former US President Obama ban offshore drilling untill 2022. Even though this ban only last for five years it is at least protected. With the new President Trump ,i do hope he won’t withdrew global effort to reduce fossil fuel emission and hoping that more people are aware of what happening to the arctic .
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this article and videos too.
In view of the Shell’s expedition to the Artic, which might have spent over stg 4.6 Billion on its failed hunt for oil, which critics said could only endanger one of the World’s last pristine environments and produce expensive hydrocarbons that was no longer needed. Shell was also worried that the row over the Artic was undermining its attempt on the debate of how to tackle the climate change. Shell will now cease further exploration activity in offshore Alaska for the foreseeable future. “The Save The Artic Movement” has exacted a huge reputational price from Shell for its Artic drilling programe, and without striking oil for another year, has decided to pull out! “Obama has now taken this opportunity to use his remaining months in office to ban all off-shore drilling in the Artic by oil companies, licensed to drill in the American Artic”. This will indeed be a huge win for the Environmentalists, but would be a great blessing for Obama’s clean power plan too! As said, “Any reversal cannot be legally achieved straight away, and would likely take several years to unwind.” A great many heartfelt thanks to Obama for his kind appropiate action, “despite being on his final leg as President of the USA, he continues to work compassionately for others and passed this important ruling on Artic Oil Drilling”. It does give this Planet a breathing space, and a chance to heal!
With all the modernisation, it is definitely sad to see the global warming has become an big issue. I hope we have not reached to a point of no return.
It is good to know that Obama has implemented a ban on offshore drilling in arctic. I hope the new president Trump will not reverse what Obama has agreed. After all, we all live in this world, and we should do our best to protect it, and the many earthlings living on it.
Sometimes it takes just one person to make a big difference and this is what President Obama has done – stopping in a small but significant way, the tide of our addiction to oil and the greed of our oil gods.
I do hope his leadership and sense of responsibility is copied in other countries so that this becomes a stepping stone towards less and less carbon emissions.
It is heartening to note that outgoing President Obama, of the US ,has recently banned all off-shore drilling for oil in the Arctic until 2022. Though the ban is not permanent , yet it puts a hold on all drilling expansion in the Pacific and Atlantic Ocean for the next five years . For the next five years, drilling will be confined to locales like the Gulf of Mexico.This is heartening news because drilling for oil is environmentally threatening. This is thus a huge win for environmentalists.
At the same time, market forces have also ensured that the future energy resources will not continue to be highly dependent on fossil fuels, but more on low-carbon energy, as the demand for fossil fuels has dropped. Indeed, with the initiatives taken by Obama, and market forces, fossil fuels are on their way out and cleaner low-carbon energy are in.
Reducing oil consumption is a key part of Obama’s Clean Power Plan, and this ban is likely to reduce further the consumption of oil. In fact, Obama’s Clean Power plan has already met its targets of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 2024 and curbing oil use by 2030. Thus as we go forward , there is every hope that Obama’s Clean Power Plan will significantly curb the negative impact of power consumption on the environment.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this article on the ban on offshore drilling for oil.