Arctic Economic Development Fraught With Environmental Disaster Risks, UK Study Says

LONDON (AP) — A British report is warning that new opportunities for economic development in the Arctic are fraught with high risks of environmental disaster.

The report was released Thursday by the Lloyd's of London insurance market and the Royal Institute of International Affairs, a respected think tank. They say the region could attract $100 billion in investment in the next decade.

The report says the ability to manage any disaster in the region, such as an oil spill, raises issues, including access and how well the various governments on the Arctic rim can work together.

Lloyd's chief executive, Richard Lloyd, says effective management of risks will require much more research about the region.

(This version CORRECTS APNewsNow. Corrects think tank name to Royal Institute of International Affairs.)

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Comments

[PhiPlanet]

07:20 PM on 04/24/2012

I think it's fair to say most types of development these days have very high environmental risks, especially any projects that require opening up previously untouched parts of the world. We need to scale back out desire to develop in new locations, and focus more on improving what we already have.

[ClarcKing]

05:21 PM on 04/13/2012

The British have always had their own agenda, antithetical to humanity's development. If they cared so much for the environment, BP would still be cleaning up the Gulf of Mexico. The Arctic is the new frontier, it must be developed via the creation of an science economy platform that will deal with the great possibility of an oncoming mini or full Ice Age. Imagine if half the globe were covered in glacier; Cold weather science/technology in farming, construction, energy etc. are of vital importance while temperatures a now manageable, hospital to human activity. The science and technology gains will benefit NASA space exploration programs, successful maned missions to other planets throughout the galaxy. The United States must act on this, we never lose in this type of investment.

[karen lyons kalmenson]

06:08 AM on 04/13/2012

destroying everything we see
in the name of "economy"
when all is gone,
on your tears you will choke
this is YOUR world, you
and this is not a joke:(

[olitenup]

04:03 PM on 04/12/2012

It is a disaster and we all know it. Shell has a pathetic track record of environmental safety, at best.

just today http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gYUZ3-5Sdn-Bh-r_eLcBhDybK-Dg?docId=7446baa0f915423aba81509d0c4c9a9a

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2026315/Fears-environmental-damage-Shell-North-Sea-oil-platform-leaking.html

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/04/12/north-sea-leak-regulation-idUSL6E8FC2ZE20120412

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/may/05/shell-oil-spill-niger-delta

[valleyboy]

04:47 AM on 04/13/2012

You're exactly right, and it's getting worse - their oil spills doubled last year:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/12/shell-oil-spills-doubled_n_1421604.html

This is not to mention that they start conflicts with people living sustainably everywhere they go.