Shell Arctic Rig Departs Seattle Surrounded by Protesters
A Royal Dutch Shell PLC drilling rig that will search for oil in the Arctic pulled out of its temporary base in Seattle on Monday for the trip north to Alaska as dozens of activists in kayaks tried to stop its movement, authorities said. Live television showed the rig being towed out of its terminal at the Port of Seattle with kayakers fanning out in an arc to try to prevent it from reaching shipping channels and heading out to the Puget Sound. Greenpeace USA said the kayaks had slowed the rig's progress and that 13 protesters had been detained by the Coast Guard. The Coast Guard said the protesters would be fined for violating a safety zone around the vessel.
Seattle Flotilla Protests Shell's Arctic Drilling Plans
Hundreds of activists in kayaks and small boats fanned out on a Seattle bay on Saturday to protest plans by Royal Dutch Shell to resume oil exploration in the Arctic and keep two of its drilling rigs stored in the city's port. Environmental groups have vowed to disrupt the Anglo-Dutch oil company's efforts to use the Seattle as a home base as it outfits the rigs to return to the Chukchi Sea off Alaska, saying drilling in the remote Arctic waters could lead to an ecological catastrophe. Demonstrators have planned days of protests, both on land and in Elliott Bay, home to the Port of Seattle, where the first of the two rigs docked on Thursday.
Seattle Gums Up Shell's Arctic Ambitions
Royal Dutch Shell's quest to return to Arctic drilling for the first time in three years could face delays after Seattle ruled that the city's port must apply for a permit before hosting rigs. Seattle Mayor Ed Murray, a Democrat who has fought against new projects by coal and oil companies, threw a serious barrier in front of the waterfront when he announced the port doesn't have the right permit to allow Shell's vessels to dock at Terminal 5. He applauded the requirement by the city's planning department. Despite months of public outcry and protests against plans to moor Royal Dutch Shell’s Arctic oil drilling fleet in the Port of Seattle, the oil giant’s ship is inching closer to the Emerald City.
Shell's Arctic Return Faces Hurdle at Seattle Port
Royal Dutch Shell's quest to return to Arctic drilling for the first time in three years could face delays after Seattle ruled that the city's port must apply for a permit for the company to use it as a hub for drilling rigs. Seattle Mayor Ed Murray, a Democrat who has fought against new projects by coal and oil companies, applauded the requirement by the city's planning department. "This is an opportunity for the port and all of us to make a bold statement about how oil companies contribute to climate change, oil spills and other environmental disasters - and reject this short-term lease," Seattle's Mayor Ed Murray said on his website. The Puget Sound region has a decades-long history as a hub for equipment used in energy drilling in Alaska.
