Over one million barrels of toxic waste to be dumped overboard daily at 5th project – Exxon study reveals

Jan 11, 2023 News

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Kaieteur News – United States (U.S.) oil giant, ExxonMobil plans to dump more than a million barrels of toxic, oily chemicals overboard daily during the life of the Uaru project, estimated at some 20 years.

This information is contained in the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), composed by the operator’s consultant, Acorn International.

According to the study, about 300,000 barrels per day (BPD) of produced water, including oil and grease; residual production and water treatment chemicals, among others will be dumped overboard from the project.

About 2,264,332 per day of cooling water will also be thrown overboard.

Bilge water from the Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel, which refers to a mixture of water, oily fluids, lubricants, cleaning fluids, and other similar wastes, will also be discharged into the local waters. According to the document 1,800 BPD of this toxic waste will be dumped.

There will also be other types of wastes that will be discharged from the FPSO that specific daily figures were not given for. For instance, the Consultant said 827,000 barrels of ballast water will be dumped during the operation. Ballast water is water carried in ships’ ballast tanks to improve stability. It is taken up or discharged when cargo is unloaded or loaded, or when a ship needs extra stability in poor weather.

Research conducted by this publication indicates that when ballast water is loaded by the ships, many microscopic organisms, toxins and sediments are introduced into its ballast tanks. Many of these organisms are able to survive in these tanks.
If suitable conditions exist, these species that are discharged in often times new environments will reproduce and become invasive species.

Another 85 BPD of black water or sewage will also be released overboard during the operations at Exxon’s Uaru project.

In total, about 6,171 tonnes of non-hazardous waste will be generated over the first seven years of the project and another 5,546 tonnes of hazardous waste during the same period (2025 to 2030). This amounts to 11,717 tonnes of waste during the period.

The study was keen to note that some of these wastes will be treated to meet required standards, but while this assurance was given, Guyana is lacking the necessary monitoring systems to ensure these toxic chemicals are indeed being treated prior to offshore dumping.

This newspaper reported back in 2021 that there were no monitoring systems in place at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to monitor the wastes being disposed by Exxon. The agency had said that it does not monitor the treatment of hazardous waste, by Exxon before such substances or materials are dumped into the country’s waters.

This information was related by the Executive Director of the agency, Kemraj Parsram.

The announcement came at a time when local fishers have been complaining bitterly of a decline in their catch, which they believe is as a result of oil and gas activities offshore.

Parsram told Kaieteur News that while the agency does not have systems in place to verify that ExxonMobil is doing its part to keep the environment safe, the EPA would from time to time visit, to ensure that the company is carrying out this requirement.

He explained, “The EPA has, with any operation, conducts periodic monitoring exercises at all offshore facilities”.

Even more surprisingly, EPA said that the agency relies on the company to submit daily reports to the Government of Guyana, which includes adherence to discharge parameters. If any flaws are highlighted in these reports, only then would the agency act.

According to him, “The data in this report is processed by the EPA to monitor and determine trends or any anomalies or deviations from standards set in permit”.

Parsram at the time however assured that the agency is in the process of strengthening its capabilities to conduct “real time” environmental monitoring offshore Guyana. This includes a combination of acquiring sensors, satellite tracking services and partnerships with stakeholders to conduct surveillance and monitoring, he said.

Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEPGL), Exxon’s subsidiary, in its Revised Cradle to Grave Waste Analysis Study says that all wastes generated from offshore operations are either treated and discharged offshore or sent to onshore facilities for recycling, treatment, or disposal/discharge.

Wastes generated from offshore operations are managed in one of two ways.

“Wastes are managed directly on the drill ships, FPSOs (Floating Production Storage and Offloading), or other vessels using on-board recycling, treatment, and discharge methods or wastes are transported to onshore facilities for recycling, treatment, and discharge or disposal,” the document explains.

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• Discharge, ExxonMobil, Hazardous, Monitoring, Waste

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