Birds and Marine Wildlife / 83some oil and tanker companies plan to continue to use single-hulled
tankers until the 2015 phase-out deadline, which is also the antic-
ipated date of the depletion of the Alaska oilfi elds. There is some
question, however, whether U.S. shipyards can build enough new
tankers to replace the single-hulled fl eet by the deadline, when
more ships will be in demand, especially if vessel operators hedge
their bets by delaying placing their orders.^64
B
ecause we all use oil and other petroleum products, we all share
the blame for making birds and marine animals vulnerable to
oil spills. It is easy to point at the oil companies. But they are merely
extracting and delivering a product we all demand in greater
amounts, and at prices we deem affordable. Accidental spills will
inevitably occur, and some of these will be on a major scale. In a
spill, we face a moral imperative to remedy the damage for which
we are responsible. How to remedy the damage without causing
more—intentionally or otherwise—is the next big question.
We make birds and animals vulnerable by moving petroleum
across the globe. The least we can do is ensure that our efforts to
save them do not also put them at risk.