A research framework for providing environmental information for planning and regulating oil exploration activities and oil spill response in the Greenland Sea.

With oil exploration activities in the Greenland Sea more information on the ecology and temporal and spatial sensitivity of this very little studied marine ecosystem, is needed for environmental planning and regulation, in order to meet the goal of minimal environmental impact.

Most urgently information is needed to deal properly with the following three operational key questions: 

Question 1:   How to conduct and regulate increased seismic activities in the Greenland Sea so that significant impacts from underwater noise on marine mammal populations are avoided or minimized?

While the present knowledge has been considered adequate for regulating seismic activities at the current level of activity in the Greenland Sea (Kyhn et al. 2001: BMP Guidelines to environmental impact assessment of seismic activities in Greenland waters), there is, with the increasing seismic activity, a high level of uncertainty and a risk of significant impacts on certain whale populations. This should be addressed with specific studies.

Question 2:   How to regulate discharge of drilling mud and chemicals from exploration drilling in the Greenland Sea, so it is certain that significant impacts are avoided, and the best solution is selected based on specific information on toxicity and degradation in the High Arctic environment?

While the general OSPAR guidelines with success have minimized the footprint of the oil industry in temperate regions, there is uncertainty whether these guidelines in their present form are adequate in high arctic regions. The recent draft BMP strategy on the discharge issue (Gustavson et al. 2012: Draft on strategy for future environmental assessment and disposal of drilling mud and drilling chemicals related to oil/gas activities in Greenland waters) reflects this concern which is also on the agenda in OSPAR committees. There is a need for specific studies to address toxicity and degradation rates in the high arctic Greenland Sea before applications for discharge can be considered in a proper science-based evaluation process.

Question 3: How to minimize the environmental impacts if an oil spill occurs based on:

a) Planning of exploration activities so the most sensitive areas and periods are avoided.

b) Planning of oil spill preparedness and response so efficient and environmentally beneficial response options for the Greenland Sea are available and can be selected operationally using a Net Environmental Benefit Analysis (NEBA).

While the available biological environmental information compiled in the SEIA for the western Greenland Sea gives an overall picture of the most sensitive areas and periods, there are large caveats and lack of important detailed spatial information. This lack of information could cause increased ecological damage in case of an oil spill, because the optimal response strategy cannot be selected based on the present information. Therefore there is a need for specific detailed information on biological hotspots and their sensitivity as well as for the environmental implications of the different response options and shoreline clean-up strategies. Specifically there is a need for information on the environmental implications of use of dispersants and in situ burning, which potentially could be important response options in the Greenland Sea.

In this Strategic Environmental Study Plan for the Greenland Sea the three key questions above have are addressed in eleven interlinked themes.