Con il contributo di Simone Santi

It was 2015 when the then American administration led by Barack Obama decided, for a combination of reasons, to suspend oil exploration carried out under the United States flag in the Arctic Circle. At the time, Interior Secretary Sally Jewell said the decision had been taken due to the fall in oil prices on international markets and the poor conditions in which exploration activities were being conducted. But many environmental organisations, with Oceana leading the way, had expressed scepticism because, despite the suspension being a step in the right direction, it would not mean the definitive end of Arctic drilling.

Read also: Historic decision by the US and Canada: permanent ban on ocean drilling

Trump calls, Eni responds

They were right. Two years on, the new occupant of the White House, Donald Trump, decided to disavow (or rather, "overturn") every environmental decision taken by his predecessor and to resume the search for oil at the North Pole, one of the most fragile habitats on earth. Following Trump's directive, the Bureau of Ocean and Energy Management (Boem), the agency under the Department of the Interior now led by Ryan Zinke, drew up a five-year plan. This ultimately led to full approval.

The story within the story is that the first oil company to benefit from this new opening towards a future fraught with risks and dangers for workers and the environment — risks not even justified by mere economic profit — is the Italian multinational Eni. On 12 July, Boem gave conditional approval to the plan to conduct exploration in the Arctic waters of the US state of Alaska, specifically four wells in the Beaufort Sea. What appears to have persuaded the American agency of the "merits" of Eni's project is the precedent set by the offshore platform at the Goliat field, which came into operation in 2016 in the Barents Sea, off the coast of Norway. Activities are due to begin in December and continue until 2019, taking place only during the winter months to avoid jeopardising the survival of whales and polar bears in the region. But working in winter in the Arctic Circle, when the nights are endless and frozen, is extremely difficult. The low light levels make every kind of routine task more complicated. As a result, responding promptly and adequately to any emergencies — such as crude oil spills in the open sea — is next to impossible.

Shell and Chevron had thrown in the towel

It is no coincidence that Eni's decision to revive its exploration strategy in the Arctic seas — taking the bait cast by Trump — is, for now, an isolated one. Also in 2015, oil company Shell had voluntarily suspended its activities due to high costs, unforeseen setbacks, and an unfavourable social climate. Chevron expressed the same position more recently. Eni, on the other hand, assures that it "will proceed with oil exploration in the Beaufort Sea, Alaska, only under safe conditions, in a gradual and carefully considered manner, and minimising environmental impact." Or at least that is what the Italian oil multinational pledged during the hearing convened by the Chamber's Foreign Affairs Committee.

Eni's reassurances and the appeal already filed

During the hearing, Eni submitted a brief statement, in which it assures that "there are not and will not be any Exploration & Production operations by Eni in environments where technologies do not exist to ensure full management of environmental and physical risk to assets." Luca Bertelli, Eni's chief exploration officer, also stressed that activities in Alaska will be carefully weighed: "Eni has approached and is approaching its Arctic activities with an extremely gradual approach — the statement reads — and all future Eni activities and operations will be proportionate to the availability of technological developments that make it possible to ensure sustainable development of any resource in the Arctic, minimising environmental and social impacts."

Meanwhile, in the United States, the Center for Biological Diversity has already filed an appeal, and so the start of operations, originally planned for the end of 2017, could already be delayed. According to the American non-governmental organisation committed to protecting marine biodiversity, environmental and social impacts are inherently an enormous risk for this kind of drilling at such latitudes: the centre, which also points out that Eni's ten-year concession in the Beaufort Sea was renewed at the last minute specifically for this operation, describes the project in its appeal as "extremely dangerous." Indeed, according to the organisation's lawyer, "an oil spill in that area would cause incredible damage, and would be impossible to clean up. It is clear that the Trump administration cares only about satisfying oil companies, with no regard for legal obligations, the threats posed to the survival of polar bears, or the planet as a whole." The next word now rests with a court.