Celebrities join Greenpeace in urging drilling-free sanctuary in Arctic

RIO DE JANEIRO – The environmental group Greenpeace is launching a global campaign to limit oil drilling and excessive fishing in the arctic, and it has recruited backers that include actors Robert Redford and Penelope Cruz, as well as former Beatle Paul McCartney.

The three are among many celebrities who signed the petition drive launched Thursday, on the margins of the United Nations’ earth conference in Rio de Janeiro.

The environmentalist group is pressing for the North Pole to receive the same sort of protection as Antarctica, which was declared off-limits to commerce more than 20 years ago.

Greenpeace says it wants a ban on offshore oil drilling in the area and an end to unsustainable fishing.