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Bridger-Teton National Forest: Drilling doesn’t belong here

June 3, 2011 By David Madison

44K Area in Wyoming

Credit: Dave Showalter

This year your support helped pull 44,700 acres of western Wyoming’s beautiful Bridger-Teton National Forest lands off the oil and gas chopping block, but now we must report to you that our victory is being threatened — and could even be reversed — by the powerful oil and gas industry. The announcement came after complaints from the oil and gas industry — and political pressure from the Congressional Western Caucus. Region:  Central Rockies Read more

Reality Check: The Facts About Protecting America’s Wild Lands

April 25, 2011 By Juli Slivka

Our western wild lands were dealt a heavy blow recently when Congress passed a bill to fund the federal government through the remainder of fiscal year with a provision that prohibits the use of funds to implement the Bureau of Land Management’s Wild Lands policy. Read more

Help us protect the Grand Tetons: 136 natural gas wells don’t belong in Greater Yellowstone

February 17, 2011 By David Madison

Along the southern boundary of Greater Yellowstone in the Bridger-Teton National Forest, a proposed natural gas development continues to draw public criticism for threatening the area’s legendary wildlife and Wild and Scenic Hoback River. And now, there are growing concerns about air pollution spreading into surrounding wilderness areas and Grand Teton National Park. Region:  Central Rockies Read more

Arctic Waters Safe for Now! Shell ditches plans to drill this year

February 4, 2011 By Neil Shader

Another victory in the Arctic!  The Arctic Ocean’s pristine waters and abundant wildlife are safe from drilling for another year. Shell Oil announced Feb. 3 that it has abandoned its plans to drill an exploratory well in the Beaufort Sea several miles off the coast of Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in 2011. Region:  Alaska Read more

Obama’s offshore drilling decision: Why we’re concerned for Arctic waters

December 1, 2010 By Lois Epstein, P.E.

Beaufort Sea, Alaska. Courtesy USFWS.

The Obama Administration's Dec. 1 announcement to rescind its Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) drilling plans for the Atlantic seaboard and the eastern portion of the Gulf of Mexico near Florida was a bittersweet pill for those of us working to protect the Arctic Ocean and its coastline from oil spills and development. Region:  Alaska Read more

Why rushing to drill is a bad idea: Help us protect fragile Arctic waters

November 17, 2010 By Neil Shader

Chukchi Sea, Alaska. Courtesy USFWS.

Like many students, I often put projects off until the last minute. This was a great source of aggravation to my parents, who would be besieged by requests for rides to the library at 8 pm the night before research papers were due. This lack of foresight on my part led to several sub-par efforts, and many teachers cited a “hurried” feel to the papers or projects in question. Read more

Deepwater drilling moratorium lifted: More oil spills to come?

June 24, 2010 By Laura Bailey

Deepwater Horizon fire. Photo by DVIDSHUB, Flickr.

Even after the Gulf oil spill and as the evidence that BP sidestepped safety precautions mounts, it’s alarming that decision makers continue to give the oil and gas industry unbridled liberties to drill without precaution in the public’s lands and waters. Read more

Broken Promises: The reality of oil development in America's Arctic

December 3, 2009 By Kristen Kerecman

Oil well on Alaska's North Slope. Photo by Anne Gore.

The oil and gas industry has been promoting Alaska’s North Slope as the gold standard for “clean” oil development, asserting that new technology has shrunk industry’s footprint and will make future development less harmful to the environment. The facts tell a different story. Broken Promises, a new Wilderness Society report, calls attention to the gaps between promise and reality, casting doubt on the assurances issued by Arctic drilling proponents. Read more