Thom Hartmann: Lookout! The Risks of Arctic Drilling

[thomhartmann]

Mary Sweeters, Greenpeace USA, joins Thom. The president yesterday continued to confuse and anger climate activists and environmentalists by giving Shell the go-ahead to drill for oil in Alaska's Arctic sea. The announcement acomes just two weeks before he's scheduled to go to the Alaskan arctic to speak about climate change. The move is incredibly hypocritical and - in his last years in office - this move adds to what is becoming a very mixed record on the environment and climate change. The fact is though - even with Monday's nod to go ahead with drilling in the Arctic - Shell doesn't expect to start production in the Arctic until 2030. Which means there's a chance that the next president - depending who it is - could scuttle Shell's plans before any wells become productive. And at least one frontrunner has come out against the plan. Hillary Clinton tweeted this morning "The Arctic is a unique treasure. Given what we know, it's not worth the risk of drilling."

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