Drilling discharges in the marine environment
The National Research Council convened a Panel on Assessment of Fates and Effects of Drilling Fluids and Cutting in the Marine Environment to establish a credible technical basis for decisions about discharges made during exploratory and development drilling. The panel considered all available literature, including current unpublished work, and solicited public comment on the issues to identify areas where more research is needed and where there is the basis for a consensus. Their report describes the findings, which are that the effects of individual discharges are limited in extent and confined mainly to the benthic environment. This suggests that the environmental risks increase during field development. To minimize effects, discharges should be prevented from burying particularly sensitive benthic environments and the use of the more toxic additives should be monitored or limited. 348 references, 5 figures, 30 tables.
- OSTI ID:
- 6802158
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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