Word: oiled
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...those who fight the same old battles have any interest in conceding. They want to win. On Wednesday, environmental groups responded with outrage to Obama's decision, fearing that drilling would damage sensitive marine environments, especially in the vulnerable Alaskan Arctic, a region over which greens have been fighting oil companies for years. "Today's announcement is unfortunately all too typical of what we have seen so far from President Obama - promises of change, a year of deliberation, and ultimately, adoption of flawed and outdated Bush policies," said Brendan Cummings, senior counsel at the Center for Biological Diversity...
Politically, the reaction of conservatives to the President's decision is vital. The White House and its allies in the Senate will be making a renewed push for climate legislation over the next few weeks, and Obama's support for expansion of oil and gas drilling, along with provisions for nuclear power, could help sway a few Republicans to vote in their favor. But there's no guarantee that will happen. Meanwhile, in opening offshore territory to drilling, which has not happened in decades, Obama has angered green supporters and undoubtedly some Democrats, not to mention politicians - from both parties...
...important to put Obama's decision in broader perspective. Any new drilling may not happen for years and is likely to face lengthy legal challenges from environmentalists - as is already the case in Alaska. (Drilling might happen faster off the coast of Virginia, where Republican Governor Bob McDonnell supports oil and gas exploration.) Leases in the vast Beaufort and Chukchi seas, north of Alaska, which had been up for sale under the Bush Administration, will be withdrawn for now while the Interior Department takes another look at the environmental risks of drilling in the delicate Arctic. "We're relieved that...
Conservatives argue that Obama has left too much oil in the ground, but it should be noted that even greatly expanded offshore drilling is unlikely to make much of a dent in U.S. dependence on foreign oil, nor is it expected to affect gas prices. Last year the U.S. Energy Information Agency estimated that reversing the Bush Administration's decision to expand offshore drilling - policies similar to those proposed by Obama - would increase oil prices by $0.11 per barrel in 2020 and $1.33 a barrel in 2030. Those increases would raise gas prices by less than a tenth...
Ultimately, that is what's at stake. Environmentalists may be justified in arguing that a little bit of extra oil simply isn't worth the risks of drilling in vulnerable coastal ecosystems in the Atlantic and the Arctic. But unless we find a way to break our addiction to oil and develop viable, scaled-up energy alternatives, we'll be fighting this same battle over and over again. If environmentalists block oil exploration in the U.S., we'll look for it elsewhere - perhaps in the eastern Amazon, where much of the rain forest is already under oil and gas leases...