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An Introduction to the UK offshore oil and gas industry and the environment
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In this report, we will attempt to explain aspects of our environmental performance. We will be honest about those things that need to improve. We will also talk about some environmental issues for which we do not yet have any clear answers.
Before embarking on these discussions, it is important to provide some background on the UK offshore oil industry and its impact on the environment.
Although many people see the oil industry in terms of offshore installations producing barrels of oil, the industry actually covers a complex range of operations in which oil and gas production is only the final stage. These operations range from seismic surveys which are carried out from specialist ships over a period of days, through exploration drilling which utilises mobile rigs on location for a number of weeks, to the eventual production platform which may be in place for 20 years or more. At each stage the vessels, rigs, and platforms are supplied with food, materials and a workforce by means of boats and aircraft. Used products and wastes are shipped to shore and oil and gas are exported.
The potential environmental impact of each of these operations is a function of the specific operation, its location and, for the shorter duration activities, the time of year that it is to be carried out.
Some of these potential impacts are very specific. As an example, concern is sometimes expressed about the possible impact of seismic surveys on whales, dolphins, and porpoises caused by the noise emitted during the carrying out of the survey. Although UKOOA uses the JNCC guidelines relating to marine mammals and seismic surveys, to address all such site specific impacts in a short report such as this would be impossible.
This report will consequently address those issues that are of significance to the majority of the UK oil industry's operations. Many of these relate to discharges to the marine environment.
In the United Kingdom, the oil industry is seen as synonymous with the North Sea. Although UKOOA's members work in other parts of the United Kingdom Continental Shelf (UKCS) such as the Irish Sea and the Atlantic Margin, by far the largest part of the UK's oil and gas production comes from platforms located in the North Sea.
The North Sea is one of the largest coastal seas in the world. An integral part of the European landmass, it is virtually surrounded by land on three sides, and on the fourth it is partially enclosed by the Orkney and Shetland Islands. The North Sea coastal environment ranges from the rugged coastline of France in the south to the deep Norwegian fjords in the North. Between these shores the coast has many forms ranging from the wetlands of the shallow Wadden Sea, the huge Rhine Delta in its central regions, to the cliffs and rocky shores at its extremities in France, England, Scotland, Denmark and Norway. Away from the coastline, the sea varies in depth from only a few tens of metres in the southern North Sea to well over 200 metres in the stormy north.
The North Sea supports a range of species. At least 30 kinds of whale and dolphin have been recorded in its waters. There are over 70 species of sea bird breeding around its fringes, and many more spend the winter there. Within its depths, over 170 species of fish have been found. There are also a vast number of small animals, the more familiar of which include sponges, worms, shellfish, crabs and lobsters.
Most of its pollution results from the fact that the North Sea is relatively enclosed and bordered by highly populated and industrialised nations. In addition to effluent discharged directly into the sea, several major rivers such as the Rhine, Thames, Tyne, Elbe, Weser and Humber flow into the sea carrying contaminants from a wide catchment area.
In comparison to these sources of pollution, inputs from North Sea oil and gas installations are modest. The sources and scale of contribution from the different parts of oil industry operations are described more fully in later sections of this report.
Although discharges to the marine environment are central to the UK oil industry's environmental performance, to look at these alone would be to lose sight of other important issues. Atmospheric emissions, and in particular those which are being linked to climate change, are very important both in a UK and European context. Also, solid waste management is important given the increasing pressure that is being put on onshore landfill sites.
The UK government regulates the environmental performance of the offshore oil industry. This enforcement is applied through the offshore licensing system administered by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and by other legislation covering individual aspects. The DTI is assisted in this by a number of other Government Departments. This provides environmental safeguards by determining whether or not an oil and gas industry activity is permitted in a given area, and allows appropriate environmental conditions to be applied.
One of the ways that both industry and government monitors environmental performance is via quantitative information on discharges and emissions. Because of the need for industry to provide aggregated data on emissions, in 1992 UKOOA set up an environmental emissions and discharges monitoring database (the EEMS database). In 1997, the UK Government accepted the use of this database as the statutory record and the data in this environmental report comes from that database.
The environment relies on a balance between competing events and the oil and gas industry seeks to maintain this balance. In everything it does the industry takes full regard for the environment and seeks to ensure that protection of the environment is always paramount.
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Environmental Report 1998 Index
