What are the benefits of oil exploration in the Arctic?

By developing offshore drilling in the Arctic Sea, oil companies can enrich the surrounding areas, bolster the nation’s oil reserves and even lead to scientific developments.

• Tapping Previously Inaccessible Oil Reserves.
• Enriching Local and Indigenous Communities.
• Improving Science and Conservation Efforts.

When was oil discovered in the Arctic?

Russia makes the first major Arctic energy discovery in 1962 by uncovering the Tazovskoye Field. Shortly after, in 1968, the first US Arctic oil and gas discovery was made in the Prudhoe Bay field on Alaska’s North Slope.

Why are we searching for oil and gas in the Arctic?

Whales and other marine mammals are exposed to harmful underwater noise, as they use sound to navigate, find mates, and search for food in dark Arctic waters. The Arctic’s marine ecosystems are particularly vulnerable to oil spills from blowouts, pipeline leaks or shipping accidents.

What region of the world that may contain significant oil and gas resources remains poorly explored?

the Arctic
Most of this area is poorly explored for oil and natural gas; however, the United States Geological Survey estimates that the Arctic contains approximately 13 percent of the world’s undiscovered conventional oil resources and about 30 percent of its undiscovered conventional natural gas resources.

What is happening with oil in the Arctic?

Polar bears Expansion of oil and gas drilling in their habitat could be extremely damaging. Direct contact with spilled oil would kill polar bears but an invisible threat could persist for years, as toxic substances lingering in ice or water may impact the entire food web of the Arctic ecosystem for years to come.

What is Arctic oil?

Arctic Oil is usually defined as oil reserves found in Arctic-like conditions, characterized by ice, permafrost, and extreme temperatures. Arctic Oil can be found both on and offshore but the vast majority (an estimated 84\%) is offshore, in the Arctic’s shallow shelf seas.

How did oil form in the Arctic?

Oil and gas result mostly from the rapid burial of dead microorganisms in environments where oxygen is so scarce that they do not decompose. This lack of oxygen enables them to maintain their hydrogen-carbon bonds, a necessary ingredient for the production of oil and gas.

Who is putting oil in the Arctic?

Yet major companies like Shell and Exxon are making aggressive moves to usher in a new “oil rush” in the Arctic Ocean. In some places it has already begun. Russian oil giant Gazprom has already begun producing small amounts oil from the Arctic in the ocean north of Russia.

When was oil discovered in Vietnam?

Exploration activities for petroleum started in the early 1960s in the onshore part of the Song Hong Delta, northern Vietnam, with assistance from the former Soviet Union. Tien Hai gas field was the first discovery made in Vietnam.

How much oil is Antarctica?

Russia Makes Move On Antarctica’s 513 Billion Barrels Of Oil.

What are some possible environmental impacts of oil and gas drilling mining in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge?

Oil development would bring roads, airstrips, heavy machinery, noise and pollution. This would damage the refuge’s fragile tundra ecosystem and disrupt age-old migration and denning patterns for caribou, polar bears and other animals.

Why is oil drilling bad for the environment?

Exploring and drilling for oil may disturb land and marine ecosystems. Seismic techniques used to explore for oil under the ocean floor may harm fish and marine mammals. Drilling an oil well on land often requires clearing an area of vegetation.