Cumulative Environmental Effects of Oil and Gas Activities on Alaska's North Slope (2003) / Chapter Skim
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The committee also was directed to assess likely future cumulative effects, based on its judgment of probable changes in technology and the environment, under a variety of scenarios for oil and gas production, and in combination with other probable human activities, including tourism, fishing, and mining. Although the cumulative effects of North Slope oil and gas activities especially production extend beyond the region, the committee's focus was confined to Alaska's North Slope and as far into the Arctic Ocean as there is evidence of environmental effects.
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identify and CUMULATIVE EFFECTS OF ALASKA NORTH SLOPE OIL AND GAS characterize the receptors whose responses to the actions are to be assessed; and (d) determine the magnitude of the effects on the different receptors and whether they are accumulating or interacting with other effects.
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to more than 2 m. The active layer sustains tundra plants, which in turn sustain animals and control processes of surface erosion and water flow.
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North Slope Human Cultures in the Oil Era The announcement in 1968 of the discovery of oil at Prudhoe Bay the largest oil field in North America catalyzed changes that affected the human environment of the North Slope and increasingly moved North Slope residents into the mainstream economy. The enactment of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act in 1971 established the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation and the village corporations.
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Growth of Industrial Activity Industrial activity on the North Slope has grown from a single operational oil field at Prudhoe Bay to an industrial complex of developed oil fields and their interconnecting roads, pipelines, and power lines that stretches from the A1pine field in the west to Badami in the east (Figure S-2~. A highway and pipeline cross the state from near the Arctic coast to Valdez.
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~ ~ _V _ L' b~ CUMULATIVE EFFECTS OF ALASKA NORTH SLOPE OIL AND GAS ~< nit ~ 1 1 ~ ll11 ~~ 'a jet ~ ,J:.~ I-;, ",.
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7 NORTH SLOPE OIL & GAS PRODUCTION FACILITIES EAST POINT THOMSON UNIT ~~ i- - , W -''' i;'' ' <~ ..Y _' ' of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline. Many small spills have occurred in the oil fields, but they have not been frequent or large enough for their effects to have accumulated.
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They could accumulate further as new structures are added in the region. Socioeconomic Changes in North Slope Communities The North Slope Borough, the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, and hence the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation were created as a result of the discovery and development of North Slope oil.
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This committee did not attempt to reach consensus on whether, when, and how experimental oil spills might be used in a research program. Other research seems to be warranted, however, including on possible ways of 9 deflecting bowhead whales and perhaps other marine mammals from spill-affected areas, and on the effectiveness and environmental liabilities and advantages of nonmechanical methods of cleaning up oil spilled in the sea (dispersants, insitu burning)
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Studies are needed to determine the qualitative relationship between the noise generated by offshore operations and the migratory and acoustic behavior of bowhead whales. The studies should include analysis of the effects of multiple CUMULATIVE EFFECTS OF ALASKA NORTH SLOPE OIL AND GAS noise sources.
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Whether the benefits derived from oil and gas activities justify acceptance of the inevitable accumulated undesirable effects that have accompanied and will accompany them is an issue for society 11 as a whole to debate and judge. However, if wise decisions are to be made, the nature and extent of undesirable effects likely to accompany future activities must be fully acknowledged and incorporated into regulatory strategies and decision-making.
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