In the field of offshore oil pollution prevention, preparedness and response, the u. A 20,000tonne oil spill is contaminating the arctic it could take decades to clean up. The identification and evaluation of oil spill risk is important for contingency planning, as well. The two russian oil companies that already received government approval to drill the arctic have notorious records for oil accidents and spills. As oil companies prepare to tap into arctic oil, a new report from the national. The consequences of a petroleum spill in the arctic ocean are potentially catastrophic. The kolva river spill 1994 the kolva river oil spill was caused by a breach in a corroded oil pipeline in the russian arctic. The arctic and marine oil spill program amop was initiated by environment. Its two heavyclass ice breakers are both well past their 30year service lives and both are in dry dockone for. Drilling for oil in the arctic 3 preface this report examines the gap that exists between the growing threat of a major oil spill in the arctic and the capacity that exists to respond to it. The april 2010 deepwater horizon well blowout in the gulf of mexico prompted a reconsideration of the potential for a major blowout from proposed oil exploration or production in the. As arctic melts, a race to test oil spill cleanup technology. Even so, the consequences of a spill in the arctic would.
The arctic council and offshore oil pollution prevention. The oil industry is prepared to handle major oil spills. Mar 29, 2021 with an oil leak occurring somewhere in the country almost every half hour, russia records many more spills than other oil rich states. As a major oil spill looms in the red sea, a whoi physical oceanographer shares her insights on where the oil might go. The largest spills typically involve a discharge of petroleum or bunker fuel to the ocean from a disabled tanker or a drilling platform, to an inland waterway from a barge or ship, or to land or fresh water from a well blowout or broken pipeline. A major spill could leave oil in these waters for decades, killing whales, seals, and fish, and bringing to an end alaska natives ancient way of life. Can international law protect the arctic from oil spills.
Frankly, our ability to respond to a major oil spill up in the arctic, especially in icecovered waters, is minimal at best. Apr 22, 2011 no oil company is remotely prepared for a major spill in the arctic, says wwf. Drilling for oil in the arctic world wildlife fund. Satellites spot major oil spill in the arctic circle photos. The challenge of drilling in the arctic and mitigating oil spills in the ocean was best illustrated in 2012 when shells unsuccessful attempt resulted in the kulluk drilling rig running aground and needing to be rescued.
It quantifies risk with explicit uncertainty estimates, enables one to compare risks over large geographic areas, and produces information on a. Fisher march 11, 2010 the gulf of mexico oil spill is raising questions about the ability to respond to offshore spills. Greenpeace russia compared the potential environmental effects of the norilsk spill to that of the 1989 exxon valdez oil spill. Why russia has so many oil leaks environment all topics. These recommendations cover best practices, protocols, and strategies needed to reduce the risk of oil spills and increase oil spill response capacity across the arctic marine and coastal environments. Nov 26, 2020 a cocktail of design flaws, management failures and rising temperatures made the worst oil spill in russias modern history and the most damaging ever inside the arctic circle. Jun 01, 2018 this is the first expert elicitation study focusing on oil spill impacts on arctic biota, and there have not been many elicitation studies done on oil spills in general. Satellites spot major oil spill in the arctic circle. Large scale work on oil spills in sea ice began in the early 1970s in canada and the united states with the beaufort sea project and the outer continental shelf. Drilling the arctic comes with a 75 percent chance of a large. These oil eating microbes played a major role in degrading the oil and reducing its environmental impact.
Estimating the acute impacts of arctic marine oil spills using expert. These modeling exercises prompted the following recommendations. The arctic is also home to unique flora and fauna that are important for biodiversity, ecological services, and overall healthy environments. The arctic region contains an estimated % of the worlds undiscovered oil, with one third lying within us territory. Cleaning up oil spills with magnets and nanotechnology tom levitt 92. Jun 05, 2020 oil spill in the arctic region of russia. Just after midnight on march 24, 1989, the oil tanker exxon valdez struck bligh reef in alaskas prince william sound. Although the arctic may be moving toward icefree summers, it will remain a difficult place to respond to oil spills. For these sorts of spills, cleanup best practice is well known. Offshore activity in the arctic, a favorite target of conservation groups, still lags behind other areas as well. Russian arctic oil spill pollutes big lake near norilsk. The prirazlomnoye platform in the arctic s pechora sea that greenpeace targeted is owned and operated by gazprom neft shelf llc, a subsidiary of the staterun energy giant oao gazprom.
It began on 29 may 2020 when a fuel storage tank at norilsktaimyr energys thermal power plant no. This book is a compilation of research on oil spills in icecovered arctic waters and recommendations for future work. To improve oil spill response in the arctic marine environment, the arctic councils emergency prevention, preparedness and response eppr working group conducted a study of oil spill response viability for the circumpolar north. Preparing to respond to oil spills in the arctic u. However, the history shows multiple oil spill accidents in the western part of the arctic. Apr 24, 2014 with commercialization of the arctic ocean heating up, were coming to realize that were not prepared to deal with the likely disasters that will accompany itespecially oil spills. Deep oil spills facts, fate, and effects steven murawski springer. In addition, some enormous oil spills have resulted from deliberate acts of warfare. Norilsk, which was constructed in the nineteenthirties by prisoners of a nearby gulag camp, norillag, was already one of the most. Apr 24, 2014 here are five of the gaps that the panel says need to be addressed for the u. Greenpeace furor, unreported oil pollution of the arctic about 4 million barrels of spilled oil, as much as bps gulf of mexico spill, is flowing into the arctic ocean every year. Besides the major environmental and social impact on vulnerable human communities and animal species, the harsh conditions in the region can make oil spill response extremely difficult. Why an oil spill in arctic waters would be devastating oil.
President vladimir putin declared a state of emergency in early june. The oil industry is committed to spill prevention and response chris kahn 89. Jun 22, 2006 a major spill or fire at one of our processing centers will exit the piping at high pressure, and leave a halfmilewide oil slick on the white snow, hamel said at the time in an interview with the wall street journal. Low visibility, mobilized icebergs, and extreme cold make cleanup efforts difficult, and the presence of any sea ice at an oil spill site makes the task even more complex. Arctic council using data to improve oil spill response in. Strong winds caused the oil to spread more than 12 miles from the source, contaminating nearby rivers, lakes and the surrounding soil. As sea ice continues to melt in the arctic and oil exploration expands in the region, the possibility of an oil spill occurring under ice is higher than ever. May 19, 2019 areas it targeted include the arctic sea, where experts have warned an oil spill could be an ecological disaster, as well as the arctic national wildlife refuge anwr, not far from where bp. He now hopes to bring the product to market as quickly as possible, as major oil spills continue to occursuch as the spill in russia in june that sent more than 20,000 metric tons of diesel. Sep 28, 2015 those working to protect the communities and wildlife throughout americas arctic can rest a bit easier tonight knowing that the immediate threat of disastrous offshore oil spills has.
Dec 04, 2020 an oil spill in the arctic would be particularly toxic, as colder waters will keep the chemicals used for ship fuels especially heavy fuel oil or hfo trapped for longer, and would have a. Oct 05, 2018 even with the growth of maritime activity in the arctic, the chances of a major oil spill remain small compared with more heavily travelled shipping lanes. It is estimated that the transit time of an oil spill on the fringes of the beaufort sea around the circumference of the beaufort gyre would be about 710 years. As the arctic becomes more accessible, national security pressures increase. Jun 27, 2020 the spill was the largest to ever occur in the russian arctic. As sea ice melts and the oil industry prepares to exploit the arctic s vast resources, the united states faces big gaps in its preparedness for an oil spill in the region, according to a report. Three books on the gulf oil spill the washington post. Nat geo home attend a live event book a trip buy maps inspire. To help first responders cope with oil trapped under ice, ocean engineers are developing undersea vehicles that can map oil spills to improve situational awareness and decision making.
Alix cage, keele university, and antonia law, keele university. Northern alaska is warming at twice the rate of the lower 48. We identify research entities in governmental, nongovernmental, industrial, and private organizations, and provide an inventory of research projects. Were not ready to deal with oil spills in the arctic. Why an oil spill in arctic waters would be devastating. He also explained the challenges of oil spill response in the region. However, scientists do not know whether bacteria in the arctic seas will be able to perform a similar role should a large spill occur along the newly opening arctic shipping routes. Coast guard to respond to, and oversee, a major oil spill in arctic waters. Oil spills can be devastating to arctic marine environments given the current lack of oil spill response capabilities. Environmental campaigners warned us a few years later that the oil terminals built in northern russia, where the river yenisei meets the arctic ocean, lack the technology to deal with oil spills. Nov 10, 2010 this report examine the risks, challenges and potential consequences of oil spills associated with oil and gas exploration and production in the outer continental shelf ocs of the united states arctic ocean. An image taken from space of an oil spill in the arctic circle.
Mounting an effective response to a major oil spill in the arctic. Were not ready to deal with oil spills in the arctic pbs. The second major focus of amop has been to develop understanding of the fate. Captain fisher described a mass rescue operation in the high arctic as one of the nightmare scenarios for the coast guard. The threat of a major arctic oil spill and the potential impacts on the regions marine ecosystems are of concern for a broad range of u. After a storage tank in norilsk, northern russia, collapsed in late may, 20,000 tonnes of diesel fuel was released into the environment.
The biological basis for remote sensing of oil spill impacts to fish populations. Oil spill prevention and response in the us arctic ocean. With a large share of russian oil and gas industry concentrated in the arctic today, concerns arise over the preparation for the further effects of climate change. In the days that followed, the tanker spilled approximately 11 million gallons of oil into the sound. The oil industry is unprepared to handle spills in the arctic suzanne goldenberg 95. Ruptured pipeline spreading hot oil in russias arctic. May 11, 2017 as rising temperatures and thinning ice in the arctic create openings for increased human activities, it also increases the potential for oil spills and chemical releases into the remote environment of the region. Arctic modeling oil spills in the beaufort, bering and. Describe case studies of the ecological effects of oil spills at sea and on land. Another big challenge for the coast guard is a major oil spill up there, explained captain fisher.
It exemplifies consequences to the ecosystem after oil spill. Estimating the acute impacts of arctic marine oil spills. Oil pooled around the rupture site for eight months, contained by a dike, but the dike later gave way, spilling roughly 84 million gallons of oil into the kolva river. Russia admits to worlds largest arctic oil spill the. Rapid climate change is leading to retreat and thinning of arctic sea ice. In the aftermath of the norilsk spill, russias prosecutor generals office ordered safety checks at all dangerous installations built on the permafrost in russias arctic.
Scientists have studied the effects of climate change in the arctic for decades, warning of infrastructure collapse, coastline erosion, and methane escaping from the previously frozen ground. The soilios robot floats to oil spills to clean them up. The dynamics of the ice pack combined with the long life of the oil could allow an oil spill to have a major effect on the albedo in certain regions of the arctic. Largescale work on oil spills in sea ice began in the early 1970s in canada and the united states with the beaufort sea project and the outer continental shelf. Why an oil spill in arctic waters would be devastating environment. Wetzel has served on panels to develop and assess protocols for oil spill response research and for oil dispersant use in the arctic. List of major oil spills following the recent major oil spill in mauritius, when the panamanianflagged ship wakashio grounded, reuters gathered in a list major oil spills that took place through the years. Jun 05, 2020 in 2009 there was a catastrophic oil spill. Bp pushed for arctic drilling rights after trumps election. The accident is the second largest oil spill in terms of volume in modern russian history.
Major oil spills such as that of the exxon valdez in 1989 or deepwater horizon in 2010 typically involve thick, gloopy crude oil that sits on the surface of seawater. With that in mind, it summarizes state and federal oil spill prevention requirements that apply to vessels, oil exploration and development operations and oil storage facilities in arctic and western alaska. The amoco cadiz oil tanker ran aground off the coast of brittany, france, after its steering failed in a severe storm. One example, the exxon valdez oil spill in prince william sound in 1989, is the largest marine spill in the vicinity of the arctic thus far.
As oil companies move further north, many say its only a matter of time before a big spill. Now imagine the nearest port from which to launch an emergency response is in seattle, more than a thousand miles away, and that san diego is. Four reasons why an arctic oil spill could be catastrophic. Russia declared state of emergency after oil spilled into ambarnaya river. Ruptured pipeline spreading hot oil in russias arctic the. What would be the worst types of oil spills in the arctic. The norilsk diesel oil spill is an ongoing industrial disaster near norilsk, krasnoyarsk krai, russia. Taking the kulluk incident and the exxon valdez spill as cautionary tales, the nrc found that oil companies operating in the arctic need to carry out further research on how oil spills affect the climate, including deliberately spilling a small volume of oil to see how the marine environment adapts. Oil spills have posed a persistent threat to the arctic. The threat of a major arctic oil spill and the potential impacts on the regions marine. The oil industry is not prepared to handle major oil spills.
Russia declares emergency after arctic oil spill the new. Quantities are measured in tonnes of crude oil with one tonne roughly equal to 308 us gallons, 256 imperial gallons, 7. This is a hard question to answer but id say a spill of a. A 20,000tonne oil spill is contaminating the arcticit. That year, the alaska oil and gas conservation commission found high failure rates on some prudhoe wellhead safety valves. Can the civil liability convention of oil pollution withstand the pressure of a major oil spill in the arctic ocean. Mar 25, 2014 four reasons why an arctic oil spill could be catastrophic. The coast guards current capacity to respond to an oil spill in arctic waters is nearly nonexistent. This is a reversechronological list of oil spills that have occurred throughout the world and spill s that are currently ongoing. As the primer says, keeping an oil spill from happening in the first place is far better than trying to clean one up. The largest spills typically involve a discharge of petroleum or bunker fuel to the ocean from a disabled tanker or a drilling platform. The deepwater horizon oil spill blowout did much to change the perception of oil. A 20,000tonne oil spill is contaminating the arcticit could.
Oil is depicted in this animation shown in red traveling in the ambarnaya river on may 31 and june 1. Planning emergency response operations for the arctic falls to the emergency prevention, preparedness and response working group. To improve oil spill response in the arctic marine environment, the arctic councils emergency prevention, preparedness and response eppr working group conducted a study of oil spill. The possibility of a major oil spill in the arctics marine areas has become a global matter of concern as maritime traffic increases as a result of decreasing ice. The arctic is already paying the price for our fossil fuel habit. After a storage tank in norilsk, northern russia, collapsed in late may, 20,000 tonnes of. With that in mind, it summarizes state and federal oil spill prevention requirements that apply to vessels, oil exploration and development operations and oil storage facilities in arctic. Dec 30, 2020 on may 29, the largest oil spill in the arctic region since the exxon valdez disaster happened near the city of norilsk in the russian federation. Jun 04, 2020 russian president vladimir putin declared an emergency after 20,000 tons of diesel fuel spilled into a river in the arctic circle. Oct 25, 1994 a ruptured pipeline in the russian arctic has spilled two million barrels of hot oil, soaking the fragile permafrost and posing potentially major environmental damage to the region, according to.
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