The Guardian: Shell reroutes Sakhalin pipeline to avoid feeding ground: "Shell has admitted the need to move the route of Sakhalin II, but unless it moves the oil platform, the future of the western grey whale is still in jeopardy," said Nick Rau, Friends of the Earth's oil campaigner.” (ShellNews.net) 31 March 05

Terry Macalister

Thursday March 31, 2005

Shell has bowed to pressure from environmentalists to reroute oil and gas pipelines off the coast of Russia to protect the endangered western grey whale.

But the move has not halted a campaign against the Sakhalin II project, with green activists urging Britain's export credits guarantee department and other lenders to ditch the scheme.

Public institutions are being asked to put up $5bn (£2.6bn) for the project, which has been hit by rising costs. Shell said an extra 12 miles of pipeline to circumvent a whale feeding area would not add greatly to the cost of the scheme.

"It will have no discernible [financial] impact," said a spokesman, who also reiterated that the project was on schedule to pump oil next year and gas in 2007.

The authorities must give the green light to the route but Friends of the Earth believes there is still a risk to the whale unless a platform is moved, which Shell and its partners refuse to do.

"Shell has admitted the need to move the route of Sakhalin II, but unless it moves the oil platform, the future of the western grey whale is still in jeopardy," said Nick Rau, Friends of the Earth's oil campaigner.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/story/0,,1448749,00.html#article_continue

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