Shell Oil’s Arctic drilling rig, the Polar Pioneer, is expected to arrive Friday in Port Angeles, Washington.
Shell has just received the necessary federal permits to drill for oil in the Arctic and will be staging its fleet in Seattle, despite a lawsuit filed by environmental groups and an investigation launched by the Seattle City Council.
Activists have warned of a flotilla of kayaks that would extend a less-than-warm welcome to Shell when it arrives at the Port of Seattle.
But first, the rig is making a stop in Port Angeles for a few weeks. That community on the Olympic Peninsula is expected to be a bit more receptive, according to Ken O'Hollaren, executive director of the Port of Port Angeles.
"We do happen to have a higher unemployment rate than is the case in King County so it does represent a brief although significant economic impact to the community," he said.
O’Hollaren says hotels, restaurants and other service providers are eager for the business that will accompany the Polar Pioneer’s stay.
The rig will be anchored in the western part of the harbor while it’s prepared to be unloaded from the ship that brought it across the Pacific. In a few weeks it will be loaded onto another vessel and towed to Seattle.
Copyright 2020 EarthFix. To see more, visit .
