Oil and Gas
Oil and gas activities within the UK are regulated by the
Department
for Energy and Climate Change (DECC). The marine
advice team works closely with the Environmental Management Team
(EMT) within DECC who are responsible for the granting of
environmental consents associated with oil and gas activities. For
further background information on oil and gas refer
to the Oil and Gas Key Information webpage.
JNCC advise DECC on a number of oil and gas activities that
occur throughout all stages of development from exploration to
production and through to decommissioning. This allows DECC to
take into account nature conservation issues when they are
considering whether to grant consents. Oil and gas companies
are encouraged to consult with JNCC during the design stages of
projects so that they aware of any conservation issues that may
result from their activities and can be advised to adopt the best
environmental techniques to minimise any adverse effects.
JNCC are also involved in a number
of offshore oil and gas industry initiatives
including the UK Offshore Forum, the Monitoring Committee
and are members of the Strategic Environmental Assessment steering
committee.
Seismic surveys
Seismic surveys in the UKCS are carried out principally for the
purposes exploration and the management of hydrocarbon
reserves. JNCC reviews applications (PON14s) to
conduct seismic surveys and advise DECC on what
mitigation measures should be attached as conditions
to the licence. A mandatory condition of consent is that the
JNCC guidelines for minimising the risk of disturbance and injury
to marine mammals from seismic surveys (June 2009). For further
details and a copy of the guidelines please to the seismic
survey webpage.
Explosive use offshore
The use of explosives in the marine
environment ranges from inshore activities such as harbour
construction to offshore oil and gas operations such as well-head
or platform decommissioning, all of which have the potential to
impact upon marine mammals. The JNCC guidelines for minimising
the risk of disturbance and injury to marine mammals whilst using
explosives (June 2009) are considered to be best practice for
offshore explosive operations. For further details and a copy of
the guidelines refer to the explosive use
offshore webpage.
For further information sources on oil and gas,
including legislation, trade organisations and oil spill
contingency planning tools refer
to: Oil and
Gas - Key Information