Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
Environment & Energy
Related: About this forumGreenland's government bans oil drilling, leads indigenous resistance to extractive capitalism
By Adam Ramsay, Aaron White, originally published by Open Democracy
November 11, 2021
In 2016, Greenlands then minister responsible for economic development, Vittus Qujaukitsoq, welcomed the appointment of Rex Tillerson, the former CEO of Exxon Mobil, as US secretary of state. Despite representing the centre-Left party Siumut (Forward) and being surrounded by some of the most visible consequences of the warming world, Qujaukitsoq and his colleagues saw the growing potential for mining and drilling brought by the melting glaciers on the worlds biggest island as an opportunity to bring in the cash which would allow the long-desired independence from Denmark.
They arent alone. While the melting of Arctic ice is causing the worlds oceans to overflow and disrupting its weather systems, it has also unleashed a whole new geopolitical race. Earlier this year, the US Geological Survey estimated that the regions rocks contain 13% of the worlds undiscovered oil, and 30% of undiscovered gas carbon sinks which have been greedily eyed up by states and oil companies alike. And many of these reserves lie in the seas west of Greenland where there are an estimated 17.5 billion undiscovered barrels of oil, enough to supply the whole planet for six months, at current usage rates.
And because the Arctic is the fastest warming part of the planet, the ice shielding these prehistoric deposits from prying drills is thinning, and disappearing, at an alarming rate.
But if some see this as an opportunity, others understand the absurdity of using climate change as a means to extract more fossil fuels and further change the climate. And this, alongside broader questions about mining, have shaped politics in the country this year.
More:
https://www.resilience.org/stories/2021-11-11/greenlands-government-bans-oil-drilling-leads-indigenous-resistance-to-extractive-capitalism/
InfoView thread info, including edit history
TrashPut this thread in your Trash Can (My DU » Trash Can)
BookmarkAdd this thread to your Bookmarks (My DU » Bookmarks)
6 replies, 1045 views
ShareGet links to this post and/or share on social media
AlertAlert this post for a rule violation
PowersThere are no powers you can use on this post
EditCannot edit other people's posts
ReplyReply to this post
EditCannot edit other people's posts
Rec (12)
ReplyReply to this post
6 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight:
NoneDon't highlight anything
5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
Greenland's government bans oil drilling, leads indigenous resistance to extractive capitalism (Original Post)
Judi Lynn
Nov 2021
OP
dchill
(38,531 posts)1. Maybe the US can grow up to be Greenland.
American Interregnum
(78 posts)2. and Greenland isn't even a Country!
I'm old enough to remember a time when the U.S. could actually get shit done.
niyad
(113,550 posts)3. Well, that explain why the f'n murdering orange traitor** wanted to buy it.
fierywoman
(7,693 posts)4. "Follow the money."
packman
(16,296 posts)6. My first thought also
I'll bet oil companies were behind him to make that ridiculous offer.
llmart
(15,552 posts)5. Informative article.
At least some places on earth are taking climate change seriously.
Thanks for the interesting post.