A national environmental group is challenging BlueCrest Energy’s plans to conduct hydraulic fracturing in Cook Inlet, citing concerns for endangered beluga whales.
The Center for Biological Diversity sent a letter to the National Marine Fisheries Service asking it to take a closer look at the potential harms of fracking in the Inlet.
BlueCrest is targeting oil wells in the Cosmopolitan Unit, about three and a half miles offshore and 7,000 feet below the surface of Cook Inlet. The company plans to drill from its pad onshore, about seven miles north of Anchor Point.
Kristen Monsell, staff attorney for the Center, said fracking could cause oil spills, toxic chemical leaks, earthquakes and noise pollution.
BlueCrest has said that its drilling and fracking plans pose virtually no risk of water contamination or earthquakes.
A spokesperson for the Fisheries Service says the letter has not yet been reviewed.
