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Environmentalists Protest Arctic Oil Drilling While Paddling Oil-Based Kayaks

Jason Redmond/Reuters

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Michael Bastasch DCNF Managing Editor
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Hundreds of “kayaktivists” swarmed a Royal Dutch Shell drilling rig in Seattle over the weekend to protest the Obama administration’s allowance of oil drilling in the Arctic.

By Monday, the protest swelled to some 700, according to news reports, blocking roads and disrupting activity at Seattle’s port for about six hours. Many of these protestors paddled into the harbor aboard kayaks, swarming Shell’s Arctic drilling rig and displaying signs saying things like “Shell No” or “Climate Justice Now.”

There’s just one serious irony that wasn’t really pointed out: these “kayaktivists” were paddling around in petroleum-based boats.

Many of the kayaks people buy today are made from fiberglass or polyethylene — both of which are plastic products. Plastic is most commonly made from petrochemicals, which largely come from oil.

Granted, some protesters could be using wood kayaks, but from the pictures it looks like many are using petroleum-based canoes.

The protest seems to have fizzled out somewhat from earlier this week, but the “kayaktivists” garnered a lot of media attention. Here are some photos of protesters:

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