tagged w/ Ted Danson
-
-
Ted Danson urges more science before exploration
Published on November 12th, 2010 5:12 pm
By MARGARET BAUMAN (The Seward Phoenix LOG)
Alaska Native groups and environmentalists opposed to offshore drilling in the Arctic found support this week in testimony offered at a federal hearing by actor Ted Danson, while state, union and industry officials asked for the project to proceed.
Danson, who is in Anchorage filming "Everyone Loves Whales" with Drew Barrymore, told the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement that its revised environmental impact statement still needs work.
"It would be a mistake for the train to leave the station ... to lease and then do the science," he said. "If you're going to drill in environmentally sensitive areas, make sure you've got it right. And we haven't gotten it right yet," said Danson, a board member of the ocean advocacy group Oceana.
"Our suggestion is to stop this draft, do the real science, the base science, and it would take maybe four or five years to do that, $20 million per year, would be well worth that effort," he said.
Danson was among 78 people signed up to testify in the standing-room-only crowd Nov. 9 before BOEMRE, formerly the federal Minerals Management Service, in a midtown Anchorage office building.
BOEMRE officials listened for some three hours to a steady stream of people arguing for and against allowing offshore drilling to proceed in the traditional sea mammal hunting grounds of the North Slope's Inupiat Eskimo hunters.
The hearing was the last of four hearings held in Alaska on the supplemental environmental impact statement for oil and gas lease sale 193 in the Chukchi Sea, which would be conducted by Shell Oil. Others were scheduled earlier at Kotzebue, Point Hope, Point Lay, Wainwright and Barrow. Shell contends that there is little chance that a blowout would occur in this relatively shallow area of the outer continental shelf, but that if it did, that the spill could be contained and cleaned up.
Danson, who was among the first signed up to testify, had visited just days earlier in Barrow, with North Slope borough Mayor Edward Itta.
"The people he represents have been lifted up economically from oil money into a place where they can live in a much more sustainable way," Danson said. "And at the same time, their spiritual and cultural life depends on whaling, bowhead whale, and they feel that may or may not be in jeopardy from this drilling."
"This is a high risk gamble," said marine scientist Rick Steiner, who followed Danson in giving testimony. Steiner, who has served as an advisor on oil spill disasters worldwide, said the oil industry is not ready to handle a spill in arctic waters. "Oil spill response never ever worked anywhere," he said. "If an oil spill occurred right before freeze up (in the arctic) there would be no chance of clean-up."
Supporters of proceeding with offshore drilling said that if the leases are rescinded it would mean a loss of one of the greatest opportunities in the nation to create jobs, contribute to the reduction of the huge federal deficit, and wean America off of the grip of foreign oil.
"To be able to produce oil estimated at 29 billion barrels, and another possible 200 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, the Chukchi may hold the key to helping us solve a significant part of our country's energy woes," said Vince Beltrami, president of the Alaska AFL-CIO, which he said represents some 60,000 working families in Alaska.
"To rescind these leases would be to remove the potential of 35,000 year-round jobs and a payroll of more than $72 billion."
Beltrami said concerns about the safety of the environment are paramount. "Shell should be held to the highest safety accountability standards possible, as everyone knows we can ill afford a Gulf Coast style catastrophe in our Arctic waters," he said. "But this company has an excellent track record. Shell has a robust safety plan and has been safely drilling in Alaska for 50 years."
Kevin Banks, director of the state Division of Oil and Gas, complimented BOEMRE for the work they put into the supplemental environmental impact statement. "We believe that it provides more than sufficient support for the decision to affirm the Feb. 6, 2008 Sale 193 and that it is well past time to proceed to the next phase of exploration."
Banks that what is often lost in the debate about OCS development is "the simple fact that when we fail to develop our own domestic resources, we export our nation's wealth through deeper trade imbalances and the costs to maintain our international energy security. Failure to develop our domestic resources 0065acerbates the impacts on the environment in other parts of the world where values about environmental protection and the laws that minimize the impact of industrial activity are non-existent," he said.
Rebecca Noblin, Alaska director of the Center for Biological Diversity, also testified, speaking of an Arctic in trouble, warming at twice the rate of the rest of the world, with Arctic summer sea ice disappearing more rapidly than climate models predicted.
Noblin said Chukchi species, including polar bears and Pacific walrus, are already showing signs of stress due to loss of sea ice habitat, but that the loaming industrial oil drilling also threatens these species.
"No one, no one has the technology to clean up oil in broken ice conditions," Noblin said. "There is no way to mobilize even a fraction of the response required for the Gulf disaster in the remote Arctic. And the truth is that a large oil spill could mean the difference between survival and extinction for struggling Arctic species."
Noblin told BOEMRE that in order to comply with the law the agency must analyze the substantial gaps in scientific information in the current EIS. "And most importantly, you must not allow drilling to go forward unless you have the scientific knowledge to say, truthfully, that drilling in the Arctic is safe," she said.
BOEMRE will continue to accept testimony through Nov. 30.
http://thesewardphoenixlog.com/thumb_srv.php?gallery=news_1011&img=all_11-18_lease_sale_193.jpg&capWid=750&capHt=350¢er=1&sharpen=1
http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTmeySEP08HG_2CA1WuVZgzlQjJJeqSGTwyljFM4-qkxBT-_IG44wTed Danson urges more science before exploration
Published on November 12th, 2010... more
-
-
(CNN) -- Sam Waterston says he was wrong.
The actor, who serves on the board of an international ocean conservation organization and opposes offshore drilling, nonetheless thought the risks were low.
"While I thought it was terribly important to stop ocean drilling, I was partly -- and I'm ashamed to say this -- I was partly persuaded by the last 15 or 20 years that it could be done safely and without grave environmental damage," he told CNN in a phone interview.
And now? With the oil disaster in the Gulf continuing unabated, "I think this is an enormous wake-up call for all of us, that we never, ever buy that argument again."
Waterston, 69, who traces his interest in marine issues back to his New England childhood, is hoping the public channels frustration with the oil fiasco into action. The actor, who concluded 16 years as District Attorney Jack McCoy on "Law & Order" with the show's final episode last month, will take part in a July 10 "awareness-raising" charitable event for Oceana, the group founded by actor Ted Danson. Waterston says he hopes that interest stays high even after the oil well is capped and the cleanup takes over.
Waterston spoke to CNN about the oil disaster as a "turning point," anger at celebrities and -- yes -- a little "Law & Order." The following is an edited version of the interview.
CNN: What can be done? It's a very frustrating time for everybody.
Sam Waterston: I hear it from people all over the place. They're feeling helpless and don't know how to respond. [With Oceana,] they can weigh in on this with a lot of other voices, and therefore be more likely to have their voices heard in talking to their representatives and the administration.
This should be a turning point in all of our minds about what our course ought to be about energy supply in this country if we want to preserve the oceans as we know them. ... There's no way to escape the fact that these carbon-based fuels are poisoning the ocean upon which we all depend.
CNN: How do you respond to folks who say environmentalism is all well and good, but the oil industry brings in a lot of money -- and we need it for energy?
Waterston: I think one of things that this disaster shows is -- for the jobs and the energy it produces -- when it is misused, or misproduced, it causes terrible economic damage, and terrible damage to people's lives, not to mention what it does to the environment.
CNN: I wrote an article about celebrity involvement recently, and some people responded angrily, accusing celebrities of being dilettantes. How do you respond to that anger?
Waterston: Well, I don't know what to say to that, except that as a citizen it's a privilege to be able to have the power to point at things. If a few people are going to take shots at us for that, I think it's probably well worth it.
CNN: A "Law and Order" question: What feelings are you left with, now that it's been canceled?
Waterston: It just doesn't happen -- shows don't go this long. I had a wonderful ride, and I have absolutely nothing to complain about. I keep hearing rumors that it's going to revive itself in some other form, so I don't even know that it's actually finally, finally over with. I'm sorry that [creator] Dick [Wolf] didn't get to break the record, but I think tying the [drama series longevity] record [with "Gunsmoke"] is pretty good, and I'm completely happy with my lot.(CNN) -- Sam Waterston says he was wrong.
The actor, who serves on the board of an... more
-
-
Ever wonder what ever happened to those wacky (were they gay too? I can’t remember) dads and the daughter after the two “Three Men and a Little Baby” movies? Yeah, me either. But if you for some reason decide that after 19 years, you might be a little curious, you might be able to find out.Ever wonder what ever happened to those wacky (were they gay too? I can’t... more
-
-
It stars Guttenberg, Tom Selleck and Ted Danson.
The title? Three Men and a Bride.
I'm perfectly fine with this.It stars Guttenberg, Tom Selleck and Ted Danson.
The title? Three Men and a Bride.... more
-
-
He’s spent most of his career as a literary cult figure who didn’t even own a television. Now Jonathan Ames is the writer and executive producer of the acclaimed HBO series, Bored to Death.
Will success spoil him? Ames lays it out to comedian Jordan Carlos in the latest of The Daily Beast’s interview series, Have a Drink With. An exclusive clip from episode four of Bored to Death follows.
Ames on Humping Jason Schwartzman, State of Literature
Things get off to an interesting start as Jonathan shows Jordan how he humped Bored to Death’s leading man, Jason Schwartzman. Ames also discusses two of his best-known works, one of which we can’t print the title of, the other best mentioned by Ames.
There two parts to this interview and a preview of episode four.He’s spent most of his career as a literary cult figure who didn’t even... more
-
-
HBO's Curb Your Enthusiasm returns Sunday nights starting September 20th. Here is a collaboration of Season 7 information and every released promo thus far.HBO's Curb Your Enthusiasm returns Sunday nights starting September 20th. Here is... more
-
-
This was how I learned. I took a cue from Ted. I mean look at his amazing sneakers and laid back attitude. Thanks, Ted. You saved me from casual sex.
"God gave you a beautiful body. Share it?!" Who uses that line? And where can I get a copy of this little book?This was how I learned. I took a cue from Ted. I mean look at his amazing sneakers and... more
-
