Responding to Oil Spills in the U.S. Arctic Marine Environment (2014) / Chapter Skim
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5 Strategies for Response and Mitigation
5 Strategies for Response and Mitigation
Pages 137-150
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From page 137... ...
A common strategy of Arctic and temperate spill response involves making sure that all possible countermeasure tools are available for use as conditions permit (e.g., Owens et al., 1998; Dickins and Buist, 1999; Brekne et al., 2004; Cater, 2010)
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From page 138... ...
created task forces to examine offshore op erating procedures, offshore equipment, subsea well control and containment, and spill preparedness and response.2 The International Association of Oil & Gas Producers created a Global Industry Response Group3 (GIRG) to ensure that the lessons learned from recent wellhead blowouts and 1 Members of the JITF include the American Petroleum Institute, International Association of Drilling Contractors, Independent Petroleum Association of America, National Ocean Industries Association, and United States Oil and Gas Association.
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From page 139... ...
Several multiyear projects have been initiated in efforts such as good practice guides for spill response, research programs to enhance spill response options, and outreach activities to assist decision makers, communities, and researchers to better understand oil spill prevention, preparedness, and response (Potter et al., 2012)
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From page 140... ...
RESPONSE STRATEGIES FOR IMPACTED WILDLIFE In the event of an oil spill, wildlife, including birds and marine mammals, could be impacted. Impacts could be due to contact with oil or disturbance from spill response activities.
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From page 141... ...
is finalizing revisions to its Marine Mam mal Oil Spill Response Guidelines, last revised in 2006.11 After completion of the revised national guidelines, regional guidelines will be developed, with Alaska as one of the first to be addressed. Deterrence methods for marine mammals have been considered for use during spill drills in Alaska, including air guns or other noisemaking devices.
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From page 142... ...
RESPONSE STRATEGIES FOR COASTAL ENVIRONMENTS A primary goal of a spill response is to keep oil off the coast, in order to minimize impacts to sensitive habitats. The basic oil spill response strategies used in temperate regions are generally ap plicable to Arctic marine and shoreline environments.
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From page 143... ...
Identifying and Protecting Valued Ecosystem Components The optimal spill response technique is defined as the one that will minimize a spill's adverse impact on the habitat of the region and its biological resources. Case studies have conclusively shown that the application of aggressive cleanup operations may delay the rates of habitat recovery by caus 143 R02581 -- Oil Spills.indd 143 7/17/14 11:16 AM
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From page 144... ...
and the time frame of the restoration of items which may be impacted. Using NEBA in the Selection of Oil Spill Countermeasures There are several response countermeasures available for oil spill response on open water and in ice (physical recovery, dispersant applications, in situ burning, and monitoring natural recovery)
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From page 145... ...
Standard Response Responsible party assumes leadership role for cleanup, Unified Command is activated, and efforts are made to make responsible party's response resources immediately available. Response Needs Knowledge of long-term behavior of oil in ice, on ice, and under ice; decision tools and processes for rapid and effective response to large-scale, remote, and logistically challenging Spills of National Significance; prepositioning of spill response equipment; resources to cover sociological and environmental damages and for long-term shoreline contamination cleanup; and training and exercises for local response personnel working with the Unified Command personnel, possibly over winter, are needed.
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From page 146... ...
For an Arctic NEBA, the process needs to include not only regulators, resource managers, health authorities, technical specialists in oil spill response technologies, and the scientific community, but also regional representatives to ensure that local and traditional knowledge is incorporated. The use of NEBA is helpful for regional spill contingency plans, since some response options have a limited window of opportunity.
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From page 147... ...
Such an approach is often employed during a spill response because monitoring and evaluation of a situation are basic steps before taking physical cleanup action. NEBA can then be used to provide an estimate of the potential impact on VECs from the spill if no coun termeasures were used, based on oil spill trajectory and fate models; oil toxicity for various resource groups, such as coastal marshes, marine mammals, marine birds, and fishes; seasonal and/or spatial distribution and specific characteristics of VECs, such as breeding conditions, habitat, and migration routes; and estimates of impacts to populations and communities of living resources.
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From page 148... ...
The American Petroleum Institute's (API's) 2012 report, Spill Response in the Arctic Offshore (Potter et al., 2012)
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From page 149... ...
The Arctic Oil Spill Response Joint Industry Program has undertaken a project (Environmental Impacts from Arctic Oil Spills and Oil Spill Response Technologies) with a goal to provide informa tion to improve and advance NEBA effectiveness.12 While the living resources in the Arctic have high ecological, socioeconomic, and cultural value, the potential loss of ecosystem services, which are the benefits to humankind from resources and processes that are supplied by ecosystems, is another important consideration in the NEBA process.
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From page 150... ...
Conclusion: An Arctic NEBA process requires prioritization of valuable ecosystem compo nents, including seasonal distribution and cultural importance of wildlife, fish, and other re sources; information on the transport, fate, and potential effect of the spilled oil; knowledge of operational limits, advantages, and disadvantages of each oil spill response countermeasure for the natural resources at risk; and consideration of logistical constraints and cleanup intensity. Recommendation: A decision process such as NEBA should be used to select the response options that offer the greatest overall reduction of adverse environmental impacts.
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