WWF Indicts Shell

A new report by WWF — Offshore Oil Spill Response in Dynamic Ice Conditions — concludes that the highly dynamic sea ice conditions around Shell’s Sakhalin operation, which can last for more than six months of the year, would mean that the company would not be able to respond to an oil spill for half of the year or longer. WWF has demanded that the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) should demand effective environmental protection measures for oil spills from Shell or decline funding. “Shell continues to gamble with the environment,” said Paul Steele, WWF International’s Chief Operating Officer. Any unrecovered oil would contaminate the feeding ground of the last known population of western gray whales. Endangered Steller’s sea eagle will also be affected.