From the Inbox: Please watch Robert Redford's new video about Shell Oil

Please Watch My Video About Shell’s Plans to Drill in the Arctic -- Then Take Action to Stop Them! We can’t let the Gulf disaster be repeated in the Arctic. An oil spill near the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge would be a catastrophe for polar bears and other wildlife. Urge the Obama Administration to impose a long-term moratorium on Arctic drilling now! Dear Friend, Last week we celebrated a major victory when a federal court stopped oil and gas companies from drilling in Alaska’s Chukchi Sea -- one of our nation’s two Polar Bear Seas. But that ruling does NOT apply to Shell’s plans for drilling off the coast of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in the Beaufort -- the second of the two Polar Bear Seas. Please watch my new video about this critical issue. President Obama has stopped Shell’s offshore drilling for this drilling season. But Shell will be back next summer, sinking its drill bits into the Beaufort Sea -- unless you and I apply overwhelming public pressure to stop them. We can’t afford a repeat of the Gulf oil spill disaster in America’s Arctic. That’s why, after you watch my video, I need you to join me in signing our Petition, which urges President Obama to impose a seven-year timeout on offshore drilling in the Arctic. That reprieve is urgently needed so that scientists can carefully study the real risks of drilling in this most sensitive of all environments. You and I must act now to avert a disaster in the Arctic. Please tell President Obama to stand up to the oil industry and put the Arctic off-limits to offshore drilling for seven years. Thank you for fighting alongside NRDC to keep the Arctic wild and free. Sincerely, Robert Redford Trustee, Natural Resources Defense Council P.S. Time is running out. Shell has said they will apply soon for permits allowing them to drill next summer. Does anyone really believe that oil drilling in the Arctic will be perfectly safe by next summer? A spill in the Arctic would be devastating to polar bears and other wildlife. Please watch my urgent video and then take action to help stop Shell. Thank you.

From the Inbox: Judge Halts Arctic Drilling

July 2010         At a Glance: In The News Trip Oil Disaster Features unEARTHED In The Win Take Action "The decision brought tears of joy in the village." -Reaction of Inupiat Eskimo community to drilling ban (AP) Oil/Gas Activities Stopped in Chukchi   Breaking News...   Earthjustice legal action has halted oil and gas exploration on leases in the Arctic's Chukchi Sea granted by the disgraced federal Minerals Management Service. A federal judge ruled that the government failed to follow environmental law. Read More Working To Prevent Another Oil Disaster: Earthjustice is taking strong court and other actions to make sure the BP oil tragedy is not repeated in the Gulf, in the Arctic, or anywhere along America's coasts. Our goal—to make federal agencies do their jobs and stop being cozy with companies like BP. Read | Comment Too Dangerous for Humans Decades ago, in one of my first cases as a young lawyer, I protected a young woman from the toxic pesticide chlorpyrifos. Today, I am proud to say, Earthjustice is filing suit to permanently ban the widespread spraying of this dangerous compound in fields and orchards across America. Read the full story | Comment "Chlorpyrifos can cause ... nausea, dizziness, confusion ... respiratory paralysis and death." — EPA, Chlorpyrifos Factsheet Support Us Protect Our Air and Water! Earthjustice is working through the courts and on Capitol Hill to keep our air and water free of toxins. Help safeguard our environmental health by making a special gift today. From Earthjustice's blog: John McManus: The fate of many wolves in Montana is in a judge's hands. Read Liz Judge: At this moment, Senate leaders are racing to prepare a climate and energy bill for a vote as soon as next week. Read David Guest: The Gulf oil threat is easing, but now we face cleanup and the sad task of assessing impacts on wildlife. Read Brian Smith: Four moms climbed Washington's iconic Mt. Rainier last weekend to make a statement about coal. Read Earthjustice and its allies won advances—or outright victories—across a broad front: Celebrating Survival of The Spotted Owl Twenty years ago, all that stood between old-growth forests and chainsaws was a shy bird with big eyes and an infamous name. Today, that bird—the northern spotted owl—continues to survive in ancient forests still standing because of a landmark Earthjustice victory.  Read More Fishermen Win in Fight To Protect Groundfish A federal magistrate has ordered the National Marine Fisheries Service to reconsider its rejection of a petition by New England fishermen to stop industrial herring trawl ships from slaughtering cod and haddock inside sanctuaries designed for their protection. The petition was filed by Earthjustice in 2007 on behalf of groundfish fishermen.  Read More Historic Limits On Greenhouse Emissions The first-ever national limits on greenhouse gas pollution from cars and light trucks went into effect July 6. Long-sought by Earthjustice, the rules are but a necessary step towards reining in the major causes of global warming. Next, we need passage of strong climate change / clean energy legislation.  Read More EPA Comes To Aid of Choking Communities Communities located near polluting industries may benefit from an EPA agreement to review and update hazardous air pollution rules covering 28 types of industrial facilities, including pesticide production operations, lead smelters, aerospace facilities and pharmaceutical plants, among others. The proposed decree results from a January 2009 lawsuit by Earthjustice, seeking to end years of delay by the Bush administration.  Read More MMS Waives Oil Industry Waivers In the aftermath of the Gulf oil spill—and following an Earthjustice lawsuit—the former Minerals Management Service ended its practice of allowing oil companies to exploratory drill without adequate plans to prevent and control oil well blowouts, and clean up after them. We still are striving to make sure all offshore drilling in the Gulf is done with adequate blowout prevention and oil spill response preparedness.  Read More | View Slideshow Legal Action Spawns Huge Salmon Run Court-ordered water releases—brought by Earthjustice legal action—have helped create the greatest sockeye salmon run in the Columbia-Snake River system in more than 70 years.  Read More Take Action EPA: Don't Let Big Polluters Trash Our Lungs! A reckless rule proposed by the EPA could expose us to the effects of toxic air pollution—respiratory illness, birth defects, cancer and other serious health problems. Tell EPA: Abandon this dangerous rule today! Only 1 week left to submit your comment! Take action today! Connect Join us on Facebook! Follow us on Twitter! Watch us on YouTube! Earthjustice. Because the earth needs a good lawyer. Earthjustice is the nation's leading, non-profit law firm for the environment. To learn more about our work, visit our website, http://www.earthjustice.org. Photo Credits - Main photo, top: Kitiwakes resting on the sea ice. The impact of an oilspill in the arctic ocean environment would have devestating effects on marine species from birds to marine mammals. Chukchi Sea, Alaskan Arctic. Florian Schulz / visionsofthewild.com. Main photo, bottom: Oil in the Gulf of Mexico. U.S. Coast Guard Photo / PO3 Zac Crawford. Salmon: Steve Mashuda. Spotted Owl: Gerald & Buff Corsi / California Academy of Sciences. Oil Rig: Florian Schulz / visionsofthewild.com.

From the Inbox: Its time to pause Arctic Drilling

TAKE ACTION: Time to Pause Arctic Oil Drilling!
	Plans are already in place to drill in the pristine waters of America's Arctic Ocean starting in July. Tell Pres. Obama to pause offshore oil drilling in America's Arctic Ocean!
Dear Friend, BP's oil well blowout in the Gulf of Mexico is one of the worst environmental disasters in decades. The response by federal regulators and the companies responsible for this catastrophe is inadequate, and much more needs to be done. Adding insult to injury, we learn more each day about how the Minerals Management Service (MMS) went out of its way to serve the oil industry's desires rather than apply the laws and rules meant to oversee it. But while the oil begins to reach shores, killing birds and other wildlife and destroying miles of coastal wetlands, plans are already in place to drill in the pristine waters of America's Arctic Ocean starting in July. We need your help to keep this from happening. An oil spill in these waters would mean a catastrophic loss of whales, seals, birds, fish and polar bears, and would have devastating impact on the Native communities that rely on the bounty of the Arctic Ocean. The Coast Guard went on record, saying that there are limited resources and capabilities to respond to a large oil spill in the remote Arctic Ocean, where sea-ice and storms significantly limit the ability to clean up spilled oil. But, just like its treatment of Deepwater Horizon in the Gulf, MMS did not even analyze or disclose the effects of a large oil spill before approving Shell's Arctic drilling plans, because the agency claimed a large spill was "too remote and speculative an occurrence" to warrant analysis. In light of the Gulf spill, the Secretary of the Interior must reexamine his decision to approve the plans without analyzing the effects of a large oil spill. National and regional environmental groups are pushing the Obama administration to reconsider its Arctic drilling approvals with ads in the New York Times and Washington Post. This week, we're running a television ad on CNN nationwide and on other networks right in Washington, D.C. to send a strong message to decision makers that we need a time out on Arctic drilling. Our message is being heard, but we need your help to push for a strong, clear commitment that takes a cautious, science-based approach to Arctic oil drilling. Obama's Department of Interior can suspend new exploratory drilling in the Arctic, and should do so immediately until a full and independent review of the regulatory and industry failures in the Gulf of Mexico spill is completed. Time is running out as Shell could begin drilling as soon as July 4th. Please tell President Obama to pause offshore oil drilling in America's Arctic Ocean: http://action.earthjustice.org/campaign/arcticshell_0510/i37iwdu4z75ji56e? We have a responsibility to protect, not exploit, these pristine waters. — Earthjustice Because the earth needs a good lawyer