From Challenges to Opportunities: Towards Future Strategies and a Decision Support Framework for Oil Spill Preparedness and Response in Offshore Newfoundland and Labrador
As a major energy source worldwide, oil products are increasingly produced and consumed. Despite progress in reducing spillage through a variety of technological and regulatory measures, along with improving industry practices, oil spills continue to occur. On a daily basis, hundreds to thousands of...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Report |
| Language: | English |
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The Harris Centre
2012
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://research.library.mun.ca/8136/ https://research.library.mun.ca/8136/1/11-12-ARF-Final-Chen.pdf https://www.mun.ca/harriscentre/media/production/memorial/administrative/the-harris-centre/media-library/reports/arf/2011/11-12-ARF-Final-Chen.pdf |
| Summary: | As a major energy source worldwide, oil products are increasingly produced and consumed. Despite progress in reducing spillage through a variety of technological and regulatory measures, along with improving industry practices, oil spills continue to occur. On a daily basis, hundreds to thousands of spills are likely to occur worldwide in many different types of environments such as on land, at sea, and in inland freshwater systems. Multiple sources of spillage are involved, such as tankers, offshore platforms, drilling rigs and wells, as well as through a variety of processes of transportation, refining, storage and utilization of refined petroleum products and their by-products. Spills occur for diverse reasons including structural failures, operational errors, weather-related events, earthquakes, human negligence, and even vandalism or terrorism. The biggest contributor to oil pollution in the world’s oceans (some 45%) is operational discharges from tankers. Most oil spill occurrences (72%) are on a small scale and the overall amount of these small spills accounts for less than 1% of the total spillage. The largest spills (over 30 tonnes) rarely occur (0.1% of incidents) yet involve nearly 60% of the total amount spilled. The project’s objective was to gain insight to current methodologies and technologies in oil spill response and countermeasures and to formulate a new strategic and decision making framework for supporting oil spill diagnosis, warning and emergency response in a cost-efficient and environmental friendly manner. The cold weather and harsh offshore conditions in Newfoundland and Labrador and their effects will be considered in the study. The main objectives of the research included: • Collect and analyze background information and data of historical oil spills and associated environmental, economic and societal impacts as well as relevant policies and regulations • Review current offshore oil spill response and countermeasure protocols and practices • Review the natural and social conditions, ... |
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