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GUEST: Kassie Siegel, Climate director at the Center for Biological Diversity

The US government has suppressed a scientific report ahead of the opening up of thirty million acres of the Alaskan Chukchi Sea for oil and gas projects. The study’s conclusions, based on six years of scientific work from eight Arctic nations, reportedly cautions governments to properly research the environmental impact of drilling in the Alaskan sea. Environmentalists have condemned the planned February 6th Chukchi Sea lease sale on the grounds of pollution, climate change, and habitat protection. In particular polar bears would be seriously impacted. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife service delayed a decision earlier this month on whether or not polar bears are “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act. The move could allow for the Chukchi Sea lease sale to take place prior to any official assessment of the status of polar bears in their habitat. The remote Alaskan sea in question is thought to hold 15 billion barrels of oil. The Minerals Management Agency which planned the sale, estimates that oil and gas projects in the region carry a 33 to 50 percent chance of a major oil spill.

For more information, visit www.biologicaldiversity.org.