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Exxon to determine own standards for 3.7 million barrels of offshore discharges daily for 20 years
US$9B Yellowtail Project …
-as Guyana still to set its own rules six years later
By Kiana Wilburg
Kaieteur News – If the government approves ExxonMobil’s US$9B Yellowtail development in the Stabroek Block, the oil giant has disclosed, via project documents, that Guyana can expect to see several waste products being discharged into its waters. Since the world’s latest oil producer is still to set its own rules to govern how ExxonMobil will discard of its oil wastes, the company will have the privilege of outlining what those parameters would be.
Map showing the location of the US$9B Yellowtail Project
According to the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), Yellowtail is expected to have several potential discharges which include drill cuttings and fluids; cement; well completion and treatment fluids; produced water; cooling water; sulfate removal, ultra-filtration, and wash water processing brines; topsides drainage; hydrostatic test water; commissioning fluids; ballast water; and blowout preventer testing fluids.
Based on the conservative estimates cited in the project document, Kaieteur News noted that these discharges will total no less than 3.7 million barrels on a daily basis over the 20-year lifespan of the project. Exxon was keen to note that since Guyana has no specific legislation or regulation governing the foregoing oil wastes, it has moved ahead with putting together a collage of standards it selected from across the world which would be considered for inclusion in its environmental permit for the project. It assured that the citizenry ought not to worry since the standards it selected are in keeping with international best practices.
Even before oil production commenced at Guyana’s maiden project—the Liza Phase One operations—kicked off in late 2019, local authorities were warned to keep a watchful eye on all chemically treated waste materials that would be dumped into its waters and to put in place, its own standards to govern how this would be discarded.
The Open Society Institute (OSI), an international body that aims to shape public policy for the promotion of democratic governance, human rights, economic, legal, and social reform, has warned many nations, Guyana included, that oil exploration and production poses serious risks to a country’s ecology and public health.
It said that every environmental medium—air, water, and land—is affected when oil exploitation begins. The Institute said the degree of environmental harm is however determined by operator responsibility and government oversight. Further to this, the Institute explained that the disposal of oil wastes from offshore drilling operations has been a significant environmental concern for decades. It warned that one of the apparent impacts of offshore discharges has been mercury pollution from oil discharges. It noted in this regard that a study had found that mercury levels in the mud and sediments beneath oil platforms in the Gulf of Mexico were 12 times higher than acceptable levels under U.S. Environmental Protection Agency standards.
Taking this into account, OSI said it is expected that oil producing states, take every precaution to protect its marine life and citizenry.
Further research by Kaieteur News has also found that the discharges from the said project are known to have toxic compositions as well as impacts that must be studied. Drilling fluids and cuttings for example, are considered as hazardous or waste which are very complex and difficult to be managed due to several impurities (i.e. heavy metals, etc).
With respect to ballast water, this is water that is held inside the ship for balance when it leaves one aspect of the world and releases that water into the environment of its new destination. If suitable conditions exist in this release environment, these species will survive and reproduce and become invasive species. In some cases there is a high probability that the organism will become a dominant species, potentially resulting in the extinction of native species, effects on local and regional biodiversity, effects on coastal industries that use water extraction since some of these organisms carry diseases and parasites which in turn leads to effects on public health. There are also impacts on local economies based on fisheries.
Guyana does not have a single regulation on offshore discharges from the oil industry despite approving three multibillion dollar projects by ExxonMobil and its partners.
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