1. ARCTIC:
Shell cleared to harass polar bears, walruses during summer drilling
Royal Dutch Shell PLC yesterday received approval from the Fish and Wildlife Service to harass a small number of polar bears and Pacific walruses during its exploratory drilling program this summer off Alaska's North Slope. The letters of authorization are the second-to-last permitting step before the company is cleared to drill what would be the first new oil and gas wells in the Beaufort and Chukchi seas in more than two decades. Go to story #1