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Oil in the sea
Volume 11/Number 10/October 1980
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Oil in the Sea This conference on Petroleum and the Marine Environs e n t , held in Monaco, 27-30th May 1980, was interesting because it had one complete session devoted to polar activities, another on the tropical zone and another on the temperate zone. The session on cost/benefit analysis of environmental management, began with H. R. George of the UK Department of Energy discussing measures necessary to protect the health and safety of workers on North Sea oil figs. He stressed the need for more environmental data to be used in the design of rigs, and he described the various data buoys and other instruments now being used for this purpose; including the Christchurch Tower which was obtaining data for wave loading calculations. Finally he listed the many laws and regulations which concerned those operating inthe UK sector, Mr F. Hughes, Chairman of the E & P Forum continued on similar lines in his paper on Environmental Management, which he defined as the management of change. He explained that the oil industry worked for the common good, using among other agencies the E & P Forum. He concluded by describing the Shell Company's policy statement on Environmental Conservation. Y . J . Ahmed described how UNEP used cost/benefit for the management of the environment. He described a number of studies which UNEP had had done; he thought that they could be used to draw up a common framework for analysis which would assist newcomers to this method. The view of industry was given by Jean Guillaume of the International Chamber of Commerce, Paris. He discussed the methodology which could be applied when considering a particular environmental measure, On a more practical level D. Cormack of the UK Departs e n t of Trade, discussed the relative cost effectiveness of dispersing oil at sea by spraying dispersant from vessels and aircraft. He also described the alternative approach the collection of oil, for this he described the Spring Sweep System which had been developed at his laboratory. June Linstead-Siva of Atlantic Richfield stressed the need to consider the ecological aspects of any problem first, particularly when preparing an oil spill contingency plan. She emphasised the need to include biologists in any planning team, and also to prepare, in advance, maps of all sensitive areas (as has long been UK practice), A detailed account of Norwegian plans for dealing with oil spills in their sector of the North Sea field was given by K. A. Westby of Phillips Petroleum. The last paper in this group was given by Douglas Seba of the USA. He described the economic analysis studies funded by the EPA to determine the "cost of clean . . . . " The Canadians dominated the session on polar aspects by providing six out of the ten papers. Maline gave a most interesting paper in which he suggested that within the organisms degrading petroleum, new suites of compounds were produced, and some of these could remain in the environment for a long time, some might be toxic. Granz considered the geological process which took place below
the ice in the Beaufort Sea, suggesting the possible problems which might arise from earthquakes and from the slumping and sliding of the sea bed. He said that emerging oil might, at the pressure and low temperature found there, produce solid hydrates. A paper by Levy described the oil and gas seeps which occur from the sea bed in the Scot Inlet off Baffin Land. Kingham described the programme of the Canadian Government; so far they had spent $650 million in exploration of the Arctic. It would seem that though the conditions are harsh, the environment bruises easily and diminution of one species could have a profound effect on many others. This could be caused not only by development and production, but also there was the possibility of pollution from tankers entering the area to remove both oil and gas. The Canadian papers gave details of the engineering methods employed, spill behaviour and clean up methods which might be used. It was interesting to hear of the floating ice platforms carrying drilling rigs which are proposed for use off Labrador; but the operating costs were given as 70% higher than North Sea costs. The alternative, working completely on the sea bed, is being considered, and this, too, requires more work on the movement of icebergs. Polar Gas gave an interesting paper on their proposal to collect gas from the Arctic Islands and pipe it to Eastern Canada. This involved a sea crossing of 120 km with water up to 500m deep. They anticipated that such a pipe line could be completed by 1990. There were three papers on oil spill clean up. One by the Arctic Operators Association suggested that up to 90°7o of any spilled oil could be burnt off the ice using air dropped incendiary devices. The effects of combined oil and gas discharges under the ice were being tested this winter. Another paper by Peter Wadhams of the Scott Polar Research Institute discussed the possible spread of spills, which were estimated to travel up to 500 km after a blow out; which might remain uncapped for as long as 18 months, due to the failure of the ice to melt during the short summer period, an event which occurs not infrequently. The last paper in this session, on a slightly different topic, was by Leonardo Guzman from Chile who gave an account of the various studies which had been undertaken following the
Metula spill in the Strait of Magellan. The session on the .temperate zones started with descriptions of the contingency planning of the United Kingdom and the United States. It was clear that both were drawn up to social and political objectives. There were differences b u t t h e r e w e r e a n u m b e r o f c o m m o n factors (l) the need for advance planning, using all available information, from both home and overseas (Sliktrak and Slikforcast were examples). (2) The need for exercises and training and for cooperation with the governments of neighbouring countries. (3) Both speakers emphasised the importance of a clear command structure. (4) Good communications between all concerned was essential. It was interesting to hear how in the USA the same organization dealt with hazardous chemicals. The paper by Audunson on Slikforcast showed its potential value but indicated the primary requirement was an input to the computor of accurate data - some was still unavailable. Keckes of UNEP described how his organization could help in the setting up of regional schemes. McAuliffe of Chevron discussed the fate of oil in the sea, and showed the awakening USA 303
Marine Pollution Bulletin
interest in using dispersants. It seemed from the discussion that industry was still looking for dispersants of lower toxicity, whereas a higher efficiency, particularly for use on viscous oils was the prime requirement. It was interesting to observe that effluent levels allowed from land based sources were about the same in UK and USA and that adverse effects were not being observed. A final paper from the Netherlands described the Cosmos suction dredger, which also served as an anti-pollution vessel, being fitted with a large skimming device for use in big spills, thus reducing the cost of having special vessels used only for pollution cleanup. The session dealing with tropical zones started with a number of papers on the Arabian Gulf area; with their mutual aid scheme and with the problem of cooperation between seventeen independent States. Once more training and communications were emphasised. The paper on the Gulf Weather Service by David Hibbert stressed its value, Lohr then discussed slick movement in the area. Satellite sensing devices used for tracking were mentioned, but, from
- ~
Analytical---lTeehnioues Analytical Techniques in Environmental Chemistry, Ed. J. Albaiges, Pergamon Series on Environmental Science Vol. 3, pp. 658, 1980. Pergamon Press, Oxford, £37.50. This volume contains 59 papers which were presented at an International Congress held in Barcelona, 1978. The contents cover a wide range of topics concerned with the analysis of environmental samples from a variety of settings. Approximately 60°70 of the papers deal with various aspects of organic chemistry with particular attention being paid to chemical carcinogens and the hydrocarbons (including halogenated forms), together with a consideration of a few special compounds such as methyl chloride, phenylurea and styrene. Presentation varies between providing details of analytical techniques, including sampling, together with the interpretation of data for real samples, to some possible applications of novel techniques based upon simple chemical matrixes. Several papers consider the use of chemical indicator species, origin of source materials and finger-print pattern recognition methods. Major problems such as obtaining an adequate resolution for some compounds such as the poly-aromatic hydrocarbons on the mg to pg scale still pose a challenge, The quality of papers dealing with inorganic analytical techniques varies considerably as does coverage of the subject. An attempt has been made to consider far too many areas, rather than select a few for detailed appraisal and thus illustrate how analytical chemistry contributes to the
304
the discussion which followed, it seemed that the claims made for them were not entirely justified. Papers on Coral Reefs and Mangrove swamps by Ray of Houston and Jenifer Baker of UK Field Studies Council each dealt with oil spills in these areas, they agreed that dispersion at sea, before the oil reached the habitat was the best solution. A paper by J. H. Jacques (on the development of a model for biological control of shallow tropical waters), roused so little response that if was doubtful if anyone understood it! A final paper on the Ixtoc 1 blowout clearly showed the need for treaties between States likely to be threatened by a common oil spill, it also seemed to show a lack of follow up work on the effects of thespill. This meeting gave a good general introduction to the problems that arise in very different parts of the world but there was a complete lack of papers on the prevention of oil spills and, as usual, nothing on reducing the human errors which have been responsible for almost every accident that has occurred.
J. WARDLEY-SMITH
solution of defined problems, what are the most practical techniques available today and how the overall quantity of data may be identified. Important new techniques such as inductive coupled plasma spectrometry are not even considered while a review of the current state of the art for atomic absorbtion furnace techniques for practical situations would have been useful. Methods for the analysis of surfaces are discussed but applications tend to be rather random; an opportunity is missed to illustrate the practical importance of secondary ion emission mass spectrometers, Auger spectrometers and microprobe Raman techniques. Many environmental problems are concerned with reactions or processes which take place on surfaces, thelackofpapers on the subject may reflect the high cost of such instruments which are only available to a few. Papers on electrochemical methods tend to be rather general and their overall importance and role in environmental chemistry is not emphasisedsufficiently. Several papers deal with industrial effluents and strategies for monitoring the environment, but there still appears to be a considerable gap between chemists and biologists who each tend to be confined within the straight-jackets imposed by historical demands rather than pool their resources to determine effects of pollutants in relation to other natural stresses, at the physiological level (when initial effects are most likely to be seen), on individual species and natural populations. The inclusion of several useful review papers scattered throughout the text seem out of place and do not improve the quality of this volume, which is timely, but could have been enhanced by a more objective selection of subject matter.
E.I. HAMILTON
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~
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~
~
~
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-
~
Oil in the Sea This conference on Petroleum and the Marine Environs e n t , held in Monaco, 27-30th May 1980, was interesting because it had one complete session devoted to polar activities, another on the tropical zone and another on the temperate zone. The session on cost/benefit analysis of environmental management, began with H. R. George of the UK Department of Energy discussing measures necessary to protect the health and safety of workers on North Sea oil figs. He stressed the need for more environmental data to be used in the design of rigs, and he described the various data buoys and other instruments now being used for this purpose; including the Christchurch Tower which was obtaining data for wave loading calculations. Finally he listed the many laws and regulations which concerned those operating inthe UK sector, Mr F. Hughes, Chairman of the E & P Forum continued on similar lines in his paper on Environmental Management, which he defined as the management of change. He explained that the oil industry worked for the common good, using among other agencies the E & P Forum. He concluded by describing the Shell Company's policy statement on Environmental Conservation. Y . J . Ahmed described how UNEP used cost/benefit for the management of the environment. He described a number of studies which UNEP had had done; he thought that they could be used to draw up a common framework for analysis which would assist newcomers to this method. The view of industry was given by Jean Guillaume of the International Chamber of Commerce, Paris. He discussed the methodology which could be applied when considering a particular environmental measure, On a more practical level D. Cormack of the UK Departs e n t of Trade, discussed the relative cost effectiveness of dispersing oil at sea by spraying dispersant from vessels and aircraft. He also described the alternative approach the collection of oil, for this he described the Spring Sweep System which had been developed at his laboratory. June Linstead-Siva of Atlantic Richfield stressed the need to consider the ecological aspects of any problem first, particularly when preparing an oil spill contingency plan. She emphasised the need to include biologists in any planning team, and also to prepare, in advance, maps of all sensitive areas (as has long been UK practice), A detailed account of Norwegian plans for dealing with oil spills in their sector of the North Sea field was given by K. A. Westby of Phillips Petroleum. The last paper in this group was given by Douglas Seba of the USA. He described the economic analysis studies funded by the EPA to determine the "cost of clean . . . . " The Canadians dominated the session on polar aspects by providing six out of the ten papers. Maline gave a most interesting paper in which he suggested that within the organisms degrading petroleum, new suites of compounds were produced, and some of these could remain in the environment for a long time, some might be toxic. Granz considered the geological process which took place below
the ice in the Beaufort Sea, suggesting the possible problems which might arise from earthquakes and from the slumping and sliding of the sea bed. He said that emerging oil might, at the pressure and low temperature found there, produce solid hydrates. A paper by Levy described the oil and gas seeps which occur from the sea bed in the Scot Inlet off Baffin Land. Kingham described the programme of the Canadian Government; so far they had spent $650 million in exploration of the Arctic. It would seem that though the conditions are harsh, the environment bruises easily and diminution of one species could have a profound effect on many others. This could be caused not only by development and production, but also there was the possibility of pollution from tankers entering the area to remove both oil and gas. The Canadian papers gave details of the engineering methods employed, spill behaviour and clean up methods which might be used. It was interesting to hear of the floating ice platforms carrying drilling rigs which are proposed for use off Labrador; but the operating costs were given as 70% higher than North Sea costs. The alternative, working completely on the sea bed, is being considered, and this, too, requires more work on the movement of icebergs. Polar Gas gave an interesting paper on their proposal to collect gas from the Arctic Islands and pipe it to Eastern Canada. This involved a sea crossing of 120 km with water up to 500m deep. They anticipated that such a pipe line could be completed by 1990. There were three papers on oil spill clean up. One by the Arctic Operators Association suggested that up to 90°7o of any spilled oil could be burnt off the ice using air dropped incendiary devices. The effects of combined oil and gas discharges under the ice were being tested this winter. Another paper by Peter Wadhams of the Scott Polar Research Institute discussed the possible spread of spills, which were estimated to travel up to 500 km after a blow out; which might remain uncapped for as long as 18 months, due to the failure of the ice to melt during the short summer period, an event which occurs not infrequently. The last paper in this session, on a slightly different topic, was by Leonardo Guzman from Chile who gave an account of the various studies which had been undertaken following the
Metula spill in the Strait of Magellan. The session on the .temperate zones started with descriptions of the contingency planning of the United Kingdom and the United States. It was clear that both were drawn up to social and political objectives. There were differences b u t t h e r e w e r e a n u m b e r o f c o m m o n factors (l) the need for advance planning, using all available information, from both home and overseas (Sliktrak and Slikforcast were examples). (2) The need for exercises and training and for cooperation with the governments of neighbouring countries. (3) Both speakers emphasised the importance of a clear command structure. (4) Good communications between all concerned was essential. It was interesting to hear how in the USA the same organization dealt with hazardous chemicals. The paper by Audunson on Slikforcast showed its potential value but indicated the primary requirement was an input to the computor of accurate data - some was still unavailable. Keckes of UNEP described how his organization could help in the setting up of regional schemes. McAuliffe of Chevron discussed the fate of oil in the sea, and showed the awakening USA 303
Marine Pollution Bulletin
interest in using dispersants. It seemed from the discussion that industry was still looking for dispersants of lower toxicity, whereas a higher efficiency, particularly for use on viscous oils was the prime requirement. It was interesting to observe that effluent levels allowed from land based sources were about the same in UK and USA and that adverse effects were not being observed. A final paper from the Netherlands described the Cosmos suction dredger, which also served as an anti-pollution vessel, being fitted with a large skimming device for use in big spills, thus reducing the cost of having special vessels used only for pollution cleanup. The session dealing with tropical zones started with a number of papers on the Arabian Gulf area; with their mutual aid scheme and with the problem of cooperation between seventeen independent States. Once more training and communications were emphasised. The paper on the Gulf Weather Service by David Hibbert stressed its value, Lohr then discussed slick movement in the area. Satellite sensing devices used for tracking were mentioned, but, from
- ~
Analytical---lTeehnioues Analytical Techniques in Environmental Chemistry, Ed. J. Albaiges, Pergamon Series on Environmental Science Vol. 3, pp. 658, 1980. Pergamon Press, Oxford, £37.50. This volume contains 59 papers which were presented at an International Congress held in Barcelona, 1978. The contents cover a wide range of topics concerned with the analysis of environmental samples from a variety of settings. Approximately 60°70 of the papers deal with various aspects of organic chemistry with particular attention being paid to chemical carcinogens and the hydrocarbons (including halogenated forms), together with a consideration of a few special compounds such as methyl chloride, phenylurea and styrene. Presentation varies between providing details of analytical techniques, including sampling, together with the interpretation of data for real samples, to some possible applications of novel techniques based upon simple chemical matrixes. Several papers consider the use of chemical indicator species, origin of source materials and finger-print pattern recognition methods. Major problems such as obtaining an adequate resolution for some compounds such as the poly-aromatic hydrocarbons on the mg to pg scale still pose a challenge, The quality of papers dealing with inorganic analytical techniques varies considerably as does coverage of the subject. An attempt has been made to consider far too many areas, rather than select a few for detailed appraisal and thus illustrate how analytical chemistry contributes to the
304
the discussion which followed, it seemed that the claims made for them were not entirely justified. Papers on Coral Reefs and Mangrove swamps by Ray of Houston and Jenifer Baker of UK Field Studies Council each dealt with oil spills in these areas, they agreed that dispersion at sea, before the oil reached the habitat was the best solution. A paper by J. H. Jacques (on the development of a model for biological control of shallow tropical waters), roused so little response that if was doubtful if anyone understood it! A final paper on the Ixtoc 1 blowout clearly showed the need for treaties between States likely to be threatened by a common oil spill, it also seemed to show a lack of follow up work on the effects of thespill. This meeting gave a good general introduction to the problems that arise in very different parts of the world but there was a complete lack of papers on the prevention of oil spills and, as usual, nothing on reducing the human errors which have been responsible for almost every accident that has occurred.
J. WARDLEY-SMITH
solution of defined problems, what are the most practical techniques available today and how the overall quantity of data may be identified. Important new techniques such as inductive coupled plasma spectrometry are not even considered while a review of the current state of the art for atomic absorbtion furnace techniques for practical situations would have been useful. Methods for the analysis of surfaces are discussed but applications tend to be rather random; an opportunity is missed to illustrate the practical importance of secondary ion emission mass spectrometers, Auger spectrometers and microprobe Raman techniques. Many environmental problems are concerned with reactions or processes which take place on surfaces, thelackofpapers on the subject may reflect the high cost of such instruments which are only available to a few. Papers on electrochemical methods tend to be rather general and their overall importance and role in environmental chemistry is not emphasisedsufficiently. Several papers deal with industrial effluents and strategies for monitoring the environment, but there still appears to be a considerable gap between chemists and biologists who each tend to be confined within the straight-jackets imposed by historical demands rather than pool their resources to determine effects of pollutants in relation to other natural stresses, at the physiological level (when initial effects are most likely to be seen), on individual species and natural populations. The inclusion of several useful review papers scattered throughout the text seem out of place and do not improve the quality of this volume, which is timely, but could have been enhanced by a more objective selection of subject matter.
E.I. HAMILTON