The Production of Shale Oil - Coursework Example

Environmental Impacts (Report) Introduction Oil shale industry causes negative environmental impacts comprises issues of land use, waste management and pollution of water and air caused by mining and dispensation of oil shale. The mining at the surface brings about open-pit mining. Combustion and thermal processing lead to disposable waste as well as agents causing air pollution such as greenhouse gases. Overall an oil shale project affects the Biosphere, Hydrosphere, Lithosphere and Atmosphere. The paper also aims to draw up a plan of environmental management system to deal with such issues of oil shale contamination. While oil shale offers an important source of energy, the processing should comply with the regulations of Energy Information Administration and appropriate measures should be undertaken to combat the impacts. Task 1: Tabulating the probable environmental impacts of the oil shale project on the four major environmental receptors: Biosphere, Hydrosphere, Lithosphere and Atmosphere. Impact on the BIOSPHERE (i.e. The realm of humans and other living beings on the earth) Irreversible impact The conventional habitats of the living creatures are encroached upon and this adversely affects the biodiversity in a region. The variety in the species begin to shrink owing to unfavorable living conditions. (Kattel 2003). Synergistic impact The gaseous, solid and liquid wastes emitted as a result of the extraction process interact with each other to produce more toxic and carcinogenic effects (Molder 2004). This causes immense harm to the health and habitats of all living creatures, including humans. Long term impact Due to loss of habitat and a source of food, many species become rare and at times extinct from the earth. Also the extraction site has to be evacuated which leads to loss of homes for the inhabiting populations. Positive Impact Though harmful to the health, this process would yield adequate oil stock for the current and future generations of human beings and make them self-sufficient in oil stocks. Impact on the HYDROSPHERE (i.e. The realm of water and water bodies on the earth) Irreversible impact Huge amounts of water are required during the extraction process and for cooling down the effluents. The discharged wastes run off into the local water bodies, causing water pollution. This harms the aquatic animals and plants. Synergistic impact The discharged water laden with waste products like tar, phenol, etc. often seeps into the soil through a process called leaching and then comes in contact with underground water and other potable water sources. Consumption of such water by plants, animals and humans have serious aftereffects (Tuvikene 1999). Long term impact The process leads to a major lowering in the ground water level, which in turn hampers irrigation and affects agriculture and other allied activities in the affected area. Positive Impact No positive impact could be figured out. Impact on the LITHOSPHERE (i.e. The realm of land and soil on the earth) Irreversible impact Occasional landslides or collapse of land at the mining site and adjoining areas may lead to irreparable harm to life and property. Synergistic impact The open dumping of solid wastes can create the risks of a fire or an accident owing to the self-ignition of some inflammable solids when they come into contact with certain atmospheric gases (Petts 2009). Long term impact Large stretches of land are used during the mining, processing and waste discharge activities. The amount of damage caused is so vast that it takes years to restore the original quality of the land. Positive Impact It leads to a constructive utilisation of futile plots and wastelands that are neither arable nor inhabited by living beings. Impact on the ATMOSPHERE (i.e. The realm of air and other gases surrounding the earth) Irreversible impact Few of the gases that are released as a result of the thermal processing of compounds and the combustion of wastes cause a rise in global temperature and lead to an irreversible damage to the protective ozone layer. Synergistic impact The residual gases often combine with each other or with other atmospheric gases to produce more harmful effects such as photochemical smog and acid rains (Speight 2012). Long term impact The levels of carbon dioxide emitted from the production of shale oil are much higher than the conventional methods of oil production as reported by the European Union(Bartis 2006). Positive Impact The carbon dioxide emissions from the heat-releasing processes can re-utilized as a source of heat for other endothermic operations involved in the extraction. (New West 2011) The above figure shows that the temperatures in the Colorado Basin estimated on average over five years (2003-07) is higher than the average historic temperature. The data from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s climate section shows the rise in atmospheric temperature owing to oil shale project (New West 2011). Task 2: Critical analysis of the environmental impacts associated with oil shale extraction and production from the Green River Formation with respect to the EIA operating principles The International Association for Impact Assessment has laid down a set of operating principles to ensure that the negative impacts produced by various artificial development projects can be checked and reduced to certain acceptable limits. The IAIA defines Environmental Impact Assessment as: “The process of identifying, predicting, evaluating and mitigating the biophysical, social, and other relevant effects of development proposals prior to major decisions being taken and commitments made” (Caratti2004). The EIA process is categorically divided into the stages of screening, scoping, identification of impacts and assessment of alternatives (Sadler2000). Following this approach of EIA, we may infer that the negative consequences associated with oil shale extraction and production from the Green River Formation far outweigh the very few or negligible positive consequences. The mining and extraction process itself takes a toll on large stretches of land which come within the confines of the site. The biotic and abiotic, life in and around the site fall prey to the harmful effects of the land, air and water pollution that result from the extraction activities. Enormous amounts of water are used up during the operation leading to a decline in the ground water level, which cuts down the supply of water for irrigation and other human purposes.Not just the process itself, but also the wastes discharged during the process have their own share of harmful impact on the surrounding environment. The resulting wastes enter into the ecosystem through the food chain and get transmitted to the organs and organ systems of living organisms in concentrated amounts through a process called bio-magnification. This leads to long-term impact in the form of retarded growth in plants and many serious diseases and health hazards in animals and human beings. The solid, liquid and gaseous wastes, thus released sometimes interact with other chemicals prevalent in the atmosphere, which may lead to violent and spontaneous reactions like ignition, acid rain or photochemical smog. Due to this synergistic phenomenon, the total harm caused is much more than that caused by each of the factors individually. The extent of the adverse effects of oil shale extraction on the different segments of the environment- namely the atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere and biosphere- has been elaborately listed out in the previous section. Though it will lead to a growth and development in terms of the economy and living standards, the irreparable and unthinkable damage it will cause to the environment is beyond all measures. So, the initiative of the authorities should be to minimize the harm caused by devising appropriate Environmental Management Plans and putting into action a suitable Environmental Management System before plunging into the project. Task 3: Environmental Management System - Plan The environmental management system that is implemented after the oil production process implies several methods and techniques. Once a case of oil spillage took place in the history of British Petroleum during 2006 offers a classic example for handling the situation of oil spillage. The firm implemented an Immediate Incident Response Plan on the occasion of the accident. Incident Response Plan refers to the prompt response action plan towards handling the hazard and preventing it from expanding its impacts. The checklist shown below includes the immediate actions that were followed when the Deepwater Horizon Spill took place (BP 2012). Such a plan may be undertaken for this case as well. The results for the Deepwater Spill might be presented as follows as a probable simulation for this case in Colorado. Incident Response  Actions taken Have you: assessed the severity of the incident?  Yes evacuated the site if necessary?  Yes accounted for everyone?  No identified any injuries to persons?  No contacted Emergency Services?  Yes implemented your Incident Response Plan?  Yes started an Event Log?  No activated staff members and resources?  No appointed a spokesperson?  No gained more information as a priority?  No briefed team members on incident?  No allocated specific roles and responsibilities?  Yes identified any damage?  No identified critical activities that have been disrupted?  Yes kept staff informed?  Yes contacted key stakeholders?  Yes understood and complied with any regulatory/compliance requirements?  Yes initiated media/public relations response?  No This response plan helps the situations of oil leakage to be handled and managed immediately. Moreover, during processing the oil from shales a huge amount of water gets used up and the nearby water bodies get contaminated in the process. Thus the South Piceance Basin group started an ambitious attempt to shut down almost all the active pits and 180 historic pits, including completion flow back water and drill cuttings, the final ones of which were shut down during the initial days of 2011 (Encana 2013). Therefore the environmental management issues and solutions could be illustrated as- Issues Measures 1. Oil leakage and spillage The first step is the Incident response plan and then tiered response methodology exhibits outstandingly convenient methods for arrangement of situations. It may be assessed that the most at risk situations will fall inside level 1, while extraordinary catastrophic situations will practically be level 3. Organic Exposure Model is utilized to compute the volume, region or allotment of a populace exaggerated by a massing of oil components in the water, surface oil, and silt defilement (Appea., n.d.). 2. Water contamination The water management system always aims at reusing the utilized water by restoring it. Hydraulic fracturing operations help in treating the fluids that return to the outer surface and are known as flow back (Encana 2013).  Conclusion In conclusion one may say that the Oil Shale project of Colorado may adopt lessons from other instances in history and the above plan if implemented methodically can meet the objectives. The response system needs to be well monitored in order to obtain useful results. Feasibility of implementation might be tested first through research and then on a trial basis. Lastly, every individual engaged in the process need to be aware of the possible negative impacts and try to prevent spillage and contamination. 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