Three recent publications from Washington DC/New York think tanks in late
March all address Arctic security and resource development from a
U.S. perspective:
Also, on April 20th the Fourth Anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon is upon us, and at least two U.S. institutions are marking it by drawing lessons learned for Arctic drilling:
April 17 Resources for the Future: http://www.rff.org/Events/Pages/From-the-Gulf-to-the-Arctic-What-Have-We-Learned-Since-the-Deepwater-Horizon-Spill.aspx
April 25 Duke University Nicholas School of the Environment/Duke Energy Initiative - https://sites.nicholas.duke.edu/loribennear/arctic-access-workshop-2014/
Notably, the federal regulator responsible for offshore oil and gas development on the U.S. outer continental shelf in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas is expected to issue ARCTIC SPECIFIC regulations soon. The rule-making was announced last year: U.S. Dep’t of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean and Energy Management (BOEM) and Bureau of Safety and Environment and Enforcement (BSEE) Review of Alaska Outer Continental Shelf Oil & Gas Drilling Standards, REGULATIONS.GOV (June 6, 2013), http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=BOEM-2013-0035 . I will write again when the regulations are promulgated.
In this connection see the Pew Environment site
1) for its excellent paper that has helped inform the expected Arctic-specific U.S. offshore regulations (an early version was submitted during the public comment period) http://www.pewenvironment.org/news-room/reports/arctic-standards-recommendations-on-oil-spill-prevention-response-and-safety-85899506213
and
2) for a blog entry also marking the Fourth Anniversary of the DWH http://www.pewenvironment.org/news-room/other-resources/the-deepwater-horizon-oil-spill-four-years-later-85899543841
This United States-specific blogpost concludes with a long overdue reference to a December 2013 White Paper by Professor Wendy Jacobs and her students at Harvard's Emmett Environmental Law and Policy Clinic on "Suggested Indicators of Environmentally Responsible Performance of Offshore Oil and Gas Companies Proposing to Drill in the U.S. Arctic," available here: http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/environmentallawprogram/clinic-report-identifies-environmental-performance-indicators-for-companies-proposing-to-drill-in-the-u-s-arctic/
The Brookings Institution
Policy Brief | March 24, 2014
Offshore Oil and Gas Governance in the Arctic: A Leadership Role for the U.S.
http://www.brookings.edu/research/reports/2014/03/offshore-oil-gas-governance-arctic
The Center for a New American Security
Policy Brief | March 25, 2014
Emerging Arctic Security Challenges
http://www.cnas.org/Emerging-Arctic-Security-Challenges#.Uzq2Wce-iTY
The Council on Foreign Relations
CFR "InfoGuide" | March 25, 2014
The Emerging Arctic
http://www.cfr.org/polar-regions/emerging-arctic/p32620#!/?cid=otr_marketing_use-arctic_Infoguide#!
Policy Brief | March 24, 2014
Offshore Oil and Gas Governance in the Arctic: A Leadership Role for the U.S.
http://www.brookings.edu/research/reports/2014/03/offshore-oil-gas-governance-arctic
The Center for a New American Security
Policy Brief | March 25, 2014
Emerging Arctic Security Challenges
http://www.cnas.org/Emerging-Arctic-Security-Challenges#.Uzq2Wce-iTY
The Council on Foreign Relations
CFR "InfoGuide" | March 25, 2014
The Emerging Arctic
http://www.cfr.org/polar-regions/emerging-arctic/p32620#!/?cid=otr_marketing_use-arctic_Infoguide#!
Also, on April 20th the Fourth Anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon is upon us, and at least two U.S. institutions are marking it by drawing lessons learned for Arctic drilling:
April 17 Resources for the Future: http://www.rff.org/Events/Pages/From-the-Gulf-to-the-Arctic-What-Have-We-Learned-Since-the-Deepwater-Horizon-Spill.aspx
UPDATE 5/7/2014: For a report on the Resources for the Future event see the story in Oil and Gas Journal: http://www.ogj.com/articles/print/volume-112/issue-4c/general-interest/four-years-after-macondo-offshore-arctic-beckons-speakers-warn.html, with reporting as well on an April 21 conference sponsored by the Bipartisan Policy Council
April 25 Duke University Nicholas School of the Environment/Duke Energy Initiative - https://sites.nicholas.duke.edu/loribennear/arctic-access-workshop-2014/
Notably, the federal regulator responsible for offshore oil and gas development on the U.S. outer continental shelf in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas is expected to issue ARCTIC SPECIFIC regulations soon. The rule-making was announced last year: U.S. Dep’t of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean and Energy Management (BOEM) and Bureau of Safety and Environment and Enforcement (BSEE) Review of Alaska Outer Continental Shelf Oil & Gas Drilling Standards, REGULATIONS.GOV (June 6, 2013), http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=BOEM-2013-0035 . I will write again when the regulations are promulgated.
In this connection see the Pew Environment site
1) for its excellent paper that has helped inform the expected Arctic-specific U.S. offshore regulations (an early version was submitted during the public comment period) http://www.pewenvironment.org/news-room/reports/arctic-standards-recommendations-on-oil-spill-prevention-response-and-safety-85899506213
and
2) for a blog entry also marking the Fourth Anniversary of the DWH http://www.pewenvironment.org/news-room/other-resources/the-deepwater-horizon-oil-spill-four-years-later-85899543841
This United States-specific blogpost concludes with a long overdue reference to a December 2013 White Paper by Professor Wendy Jacobs and her students at Harvard's Emmett Environmental Law and Policy Clinic on "Suggested Indicators of Environmentally Responsible Performance of Offshore Oil and Gas Companies Proposing to Drill in the U.S. Arctic," available here: http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/environmentallawprogram/clinic-report-identifies-environmental-performance-indicators-for-companies-proposing-to-drill-in-the-u-s-arctic/
