Alaska & BigOil want the humpback whale off the Endangered Species list

[Panich52]

Thanks to Al Jazeera for drawing attention to this.

WashingtonPost

The state of Alaska wants the federal government to remove endangered species protections for humpback whales that migrate seasonally between Alaska and Hawaii, a step that would remove a hurdle for companies that want to explore the Arctic Coast for oil.

On Wednesday, Alaska’s Department of Fish and Game filed a petition with the National Marine Fisheries Service seeking to designate the specific subspecies of humpback that travels between the two states, and to take it off the endangered species list  because its population has rebounded from dangerously low levels just a few decades ago.

The humpback whale was one of the first animals placed on the endangered species list in 1970. By the time the International Whaling Commission ordered hunters to stop harvesting humpbacks, only about 1,000 remained. In the intervening four decades, population stocks have rebounded across the world, and now an estimated 21,800 live in the North Pacific, the department said in its petition.

“The recovery of humpback whales in the North Pacific is an [Endangered Species Act] success story,” Division of Wildlife Conservation director Doug Vincent-Lang said in a statement. “These whales have shown consistent gains in numbers and occupy their entire historical range, which demonstrates that they are not in danger of extinction now or in the foreseeable future.”

Listing an animal as an endangered species means any activity that might harm the animal’s natural habitat requires federal approval. If the humpback is removed from the list, Alaska could begin authorizing companies to look for oil — and eventually to drill — in arctic oceans.

Alaska officials are worried that after years of successful oil production throughout the state, production rates have been declining sharply. Production has dropped from a high of 759 million barrels of oil in 1988 to just 205 million barrels today. Companies are not only producing less in Alaska, but new technologies mean they find it more efficient to drill for oil in places like the Bakken oil field in North Dakota.

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[Buzz Clik]

1. Of course they do.

They also want to be immune from environmental regulations and want massive tax breaks.

[Nihil]

2. There's no danger of stupidity, greed or profit making the endangered list is there? (n/t)