BRUSSELS, Oct. 18 (UPI) -- The European Union is overreacting to environmental issues associated with oil and gas reserves emerging from the arctic, Greenland officials said.
The European Union is putting pressure on Greenland over exploration of the arctic, noting mass protests were on the horizon without some level of environmental protection.
EU Vice President Diana Wallis said public pressure was mounting as concerns over deep water exploration grew, London's Guardian newspaper reports.
"If we don't do things then people will take to the streets to make sure something is done over climate change," she said.
Greenland, said the EU is overreacting in the wake of the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico during the summer.
Inuuteq Holm Olsen, Greenland deputy foreign minister, said environmental concerns shouldn't override the need to find new sources of energy.
"What the rest of you have been benefiting from should not be denied to us in the arctic," Olsen said.
The U.S. Geological Survey suggests there are around 50 billion barrels of oil and natural gas in Greenland. Tough winter conditions have kept many international energy explorers at bay, though the receding of ice caps is making the area more accessible.
