WASHINGTON -- The Obama administration's approval Monday of drilling for oil in the Arctic Ocean clashes with the message President Barack Obama will deliver when he visits Alaska to emphasize the dangers of climate change, some environmental groups say.
As much as the groups praise Obama for his overall body of work -- from stricter fuel-efficiency standards to regulations aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions from power plants -- they consider the approval of exploratory drilling in the Arctic a stain on his environmental legacy.
The burning of fossil fuels causes more greenhouse gases to build up in the atmosphere. Some groups would prefer leaving the oil in the ground and not risking drilling for it under harsh environmental conditions that could hinder the response to a potential spill.
"It sends a terrible signal to the rest of the world for the United States to be using public resources to promote that development," said Niel Lawrence of the Natural Resources Defense Council. "We have to make clear to the rest of the world that we are all in on a clean energy future. And we've got to stop giving the rest of the world license to go exploring by permitting Shell to do it."
The administration previously allowed Royal Dutch Shell to begin drilling only the top sections of two wells in the Chukchi Sea because key equipment was stuck on a vessel that needed repair in Portland, Ore. Now, Shell is free to drill into oil-bearing rock, estimated at 8,000 feet below the ocean floor.
In her first major break with Obama over environmental policy, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton said Tuesday that she opposed drilling in the Alaskan Arctic because it is too dangerous.
"The Arctic is a unique treasure," Clinton said in a personally signed message on Twitter. "Given what we know, it's not worth the risk of drilling."
It provides the latest indication that Clinton will move to the left on environmental policy. Late last month, she laid out a climate plan in which she pledged that the U.S. would obtain 33 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2027, which exceeds Obama's goal to generate 20 percent of America's electricity by 2030. Right now, renewable energy accounts for 7 percent of the nation's electric power supply.
Shell declined to comment Tuesday on Clinton's drilling position.
Environmentalists immediately praised Clinton's decision to oppose drilling in the area.
"We applaud Secretary Clinton for standing up for what science, the will of the American people and common sense demand. She's exactly right: Everything we know about dangerous oil drilling in the Arctic indicates it imperils a national treasure and is guaranteed to make our climate crisis worse," Michael Brune, executive director of the Sierra Club, said in a statement.
The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that U.S. Arctic waters hold 26 billion barrels of recoverable oil. Shell is eager to explore in a basin that company officials say could be a "game changer" for domestic production.
Obama, who is to visit Alaska later this month, said he is mindful of the dangers of offshore drilling, particularly given the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
When asked whether the administration was sending contradictory messages, White House spokesman Frank Benenati said the administration has invested heavily in renewable energy so the nation can transition off fossil fuels.
"But it's also true that we cannot make that transition overnight, which is why we have taken steps to ensure safe and responsible development of our domestic energy resources that benefits our economy and enhances global energy security, with safety remaining paramount," Benenati said.
The administration's approval of Shell's exploration efforts has done little to stem criticism from congressional Republicans and industry officials who have often accused the administration of hindering oil and gas production on federal lands. At the same time, the go-ahead has upset a key base of Obama's support.
"It's perplexing and depressing, quite frankly, to hear President Obama say he wants to fix climate change but then approve Arctic drilling. It's like a doctor diagnosing a patient but then refusing to write a prescription," said Rebecca Noblin, Alaska director for the Center for Biological Diversity.
In his visit to Alaska, Obama is expected to stress the dangers of climate change. He said Alaskans are on the front lines of the problem.
Information for this article was contributed by Kevin Freking and Dan Joling of The Associated Press; and by Juliet Eilperin of The Washington Post.
A Section on 08/19/2015