With possible drilling expected to begin in July, several environmental groups led by the Sierra Club filed a petition in the US District Court of Appeals for San Francisco-based Ninth Circuit to halt the plans of Arctic Drilling, PLC, a subsidiary of Shell Oil, to begin extraction in Alaska, Reuters reported.

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The groups filed the lawsuit against the US Department of Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, which gave conditional approval last month for Shell to resume fossil fuel exploration after mishaps throughout 2102.

Many Alaska lawmakers welcomed the approval leading to the appeal, believing it would bring cash and jobs to the State. But the approval was countered by environmental objections including environmental groups and Alaska Native Groups, the members of which "use and enjoy the affected area for recreational, aesthetic, or scientific purposes or whose members depend on the ecosystems and wildlife of the Arctic for subsistence, cultural, and traditional uses," a statement said. 

According to Shell spokesman Curtis Smith, the company expected its plan to be challenged in court "by many of the same organizations that have historically used legal maneuvers to delay Arctic exploration." An Interior Department spokeswoman declined to comment.

Both energy analysts and environmentalists believe that the Arctic could hold up to 20 percent of global oil and natural gas reserves, but environmental groups argue that weather conditions make it impossible to drill safely in the Arctic. Many of these groups further stated that the Arctic region helps regulate the global climate through the layers of sea ice found throughout the arctic, which has been under climate pressures recently.

In approving Shell's plan, U.S. agencies said the approval is preliminary, and that the company would still have to obtain additional permits and biological opinions to protect resources, wildlife, and workers.

In Shell's home port of Seattle, activists staged protests over the port as a home base for Arctic-bound drilling vessels.

Several nations are now shifting away from fossil fuel for energy sources to green energy. According to USB, a Swiss global financial services company, 70GW of coal and gas-fired generation closed down and the trend is rising.

It showed that there have been reductions of fossil fuel-run energy ventures while more clean energy opportunities are emerging.

Citing a Bernstein research firm analysis, The Economist reported that a rise in global investment in renewable energy amounted to $270 billion. Solar, power, and wind energy ventures are seen as an alternative to fossil fuel-run power sources.

Governments have also encouraged investments in renewables to slow down the harmful effects of climate change.

Titanium dioxide has become known to be a key component in PV applications which will enable several industries to reshape the local solar industry. White Mountain Titanium Corporation (OTCQB:WMTM), a newcomer in the rutile-titanium dioxide exploration industry, is one company that can provide titanium raw materials to build more solar power generators.

Countries like China and India are shifting to renewables, with solar being the most popular of the technology. Solar power generators have proliferated all over the word.

TagsShell oil, Shell oil controversy, Shell oil arctic, Arctic drilling, renewable energy sources, Renewable Energy News, solar panels, White Mountain Titanium, Seattle activists, Arctic drilling