Offshore Drilling Backlash May Boost Shale, Oil Sands
The massive Gulf oil spill may hasten the development of shale gas and oil sands, North America’s two most important emerging energy sources. The risk of pursuing deepwater oil reserves dwarfs the environmental concerns facing both onshore sectors.
See http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE65D56I20100614.
(For information on tarsands, and the destructive impacts of mining them, see articles listed at https://londonminingnetwork.org/?s=tarsands.)
UK parliamentary motion says BP disaster shows need for better pension fund ESG reporting
Early Day Motion calls on government to improve environmental risk assessment in investment.
See http://www.responsible-investor.com/home/article/uk_parliamentary_bp/.
You may wish to ask your MP to sign Early Day Motion 209 – it has implications for pension fund investment in mining as well as in oil.
Early Day Motion EDM 209:  DEEPWATER HORIZON OIL SPILL AND UK PENSIONS FUNDS, 14.06.2010
That this House notes that the Deepwater Horizon disaster is now considered the largest offshore oil spill in US history, and will have devastating environmental and social consequences for years to come; notes that almost all British pension funds have significant investments in BP, and that uncertainty over BP’s share price and quarterly dividend will hit ordinary pension savers; believes that this incident clearly demonstrates that environmental risks are also financial risks; further believes that pension funds should do more to integrate environmental risk assessment into their investment practices; and therefore calls on the Government to ensure that pension funds report fully on their policy and practice regarding environmental, social and governance risks.
See http://edmi.parliament.uk/EDMi/EDMDetails.aspx?EDMID=41132&SESSION=905.
FairPensions has launched an online action calling on Pensions Minister Steve Webb to toughen up standards for pension funds so that in future investors work with companies in their portfolios to tackle such risks.
See http://www.fairpensions.org.uk/oilspill?utm_content={LAST_UPDATED}&utm_source=VerticalResponse&utm_medium=Email&utm_term=Take%20Action%20Now%20%3E&utm_campaign=Urgent%20action%20request%3A%20Gulf%20Oil%20Spillcontent.