MATVEEVYU.L, KORNEEV O.YU., RYBALKOA.E., FEDOROVA N.K., IVANOVG.I.
SEVMORGEO

The process of gradual transition from explorations to extraction of oil and gas on west-arctic shelf is accompanied by steadfast attention to a condition of environmental situation in perspective oil-and-gas-bearing areas.

Now control behind this situation execute a lot of organizations, including MMBL VNIIOceangeology, PINRO. AARI, and also nature protection organizations of mineral resources users, which had already realized purchasing of licenses for exploitation of mineral resources on shelf The majority of these organizations conducts the investigations in a regime of recurring supervision, that is. approaching to monitoring. Actually the environmental monitoring is carried out by organizations of Roshydromet (advantageously Arctic-Antarctic Research Institute) and also Ministry for Natural Resources of the Russian Federation, which one are submitted State Company "Sevmorgeo", specialized Center on monitoring Baltic and arctic seas enters in a structure which one.

Now the majority of the ecological organizations engaged in the given problem consider, that oil and gas operators receive the clean Barents Sea. This phrase was expressed by academician G.G.Matishov at past meeting two years ago and it has not called anybody oppositions, hi particular, the data received by us at geoenvironmental monitoring on areas “Prirazlomnoe” and "Varandey-sea", testify to low contents total hydrocarbons in bottom sediments and near-bottom waters (in bottom deposits of their concentration do not exceed 0.05 mg/g). The spike of their concentrations in 2000 is contacted to works on a continental part of the deposit "Varandey", but after conducting there nature protection measures the inflow of the polluted waste in the sea was essentially decreased and ecological situation was normalized.

However ecological hazard with the beginning of commercial maintenance of petroleum and natural gas fields may multiply will be augmented. It is linked as to an opportunity actually oil spills, and with only technological consequences of process of industrial drilling. Special hazard is presented with processes of haul of oil and gas both pipeline, and marine transport. All this demands organization of reliable system of protection of natural environment, one of the basic constituents which one monitoring is.

We would like to be stopped in our report on three questions:

1. the brief results of conducting of state monitoring of shelf environment (SMSE) on water area of the Barents and Pechora Seas;

2. the problems of organization of SMSE in connection with development of oil-and-gas extracting complex:

3. the parity in these works of federal subdivisions and mineral resources users.

Basic ecological problems of the Barents Sea are affecting large megacities on an environment of water area, pollution by mineral oil as a result of a complex of the reasons and radioactive hazard, which one it is linked as to conducted tests of nuclear-powered and hydrogen weapon and with existence of nuclear-powered fleet, mainly, naval, and with a dumping of a radioactive waste in a near-shore area of eastern coast of Kara sea. The greatest hazard to natural environment at explorations on oil and gas present:

- failure of bottom deposits cover and communities of benthic organisms at an intrusion of auger systems in a sea bottom;
- affecting of nontoxic drill fluids on biota, including raise of a water turbidity neighborhoods of drilling platforms;
- inflow in water of oil-hydrocarbons both with waste from industrial targets, and at emergency oil blowouts at opening productive deposits (Matishov et al., 2001).

State monitoring of condition of mineral resources of the Barents-Kara shelf exists since 1999. But, already to this time for the perspective areas were conducted all-up geological and ecological research, which one have allowed to estimate background characteristics of the basic pollutants in bottom deposits and near-bottom waters (Ivanov et al., 1997; The Pechora sea..., 2003). On the basis of these data in 1995 in State company "Sevmorgeo" it was prepared "The conception of state geoecological monitoring of Barents Sea shelf, where the network of the geoecological polygons having a various geological structure and in anthropogenic load was outlined. In 2000 these polygons have received the status federal. The federal network of observations was formed in limits these polygons by results of former works. The majority of polygons on Barents and the Pechora shells were linked to license areas, and development of a network of observations was envisioned in a succession of alleged posing these areas on a tender. The basic polygons were the "Varandey-sea", "Priraslomnoe" and "Stockman". Since 2002, the investigations have begun is conducted also on the area "Barents-2", and in 2004 according to the planned schedule of contract works should cover as well the area the "Barents-3" near island Kolguev and Kola peninsula.

By 2000 the basic requirements to the operations of federal monitoring were formed. They included both analysis of high layers of bottom sediments, and near-bottom and pore waters. The water investigations has principal value as only analysis of character of oxidation-reduction conditions near the bottom really allows to estimate character and a directivity of migration of chemical elements and compounds. The big attention was given also to usage to the express - analytical methods enabling immediately on a vessel to estimate the contents of oxygen, redox-potential, pH concentration of phosphates, salinity of near-bottom waters, and for bottom deposits - vertical distribution of redox-potential. These data almost allow classifying in a real time the underwater floor spaces of a sea bottom on an extent of a disturbance of environment- and in most cases to give their preliminary geochemical interpretation. The major question of an estimation of condition of marine environment on areas of a hydrocarbons mining, their overloads and haul is mating results of geoenvironmental monitoring of shelf and the ecological monitoring conducted by organizations of Federal Hydrometereology and Environmental Monitoring Service and various scientific research institutes. First of all it concerns biomonitoring as only the data on preservation of the ecosystems may serve as objective criterion of relative ecological safety of engineering-technical works on a shelf. Conducted MMBI ecological investigations in the Pechora Sea in 1992-1995 are an example the first all-up ecological monitoring in areas of industrial assimilation of a shelf and have allowed to receive the complete authentic background description of existential structure and functioning ecosystems the given basin (Matischov et. al.,2002).

The perspectives of SMSE development in oil-and-gas-bearing areas of the Barents-Kara shelf are linked as to further exhibiting to competition of fund of unallotted mineral resources, and about actually processes of economic assimilation of a shelf by oil-and-gas branch. Primary goals of it are:

1. check of development of potentially dangerous processes and the phenomena in geological environment on a basis of regularly repeating observations;

2. estimation of tendencies and the forecast of development exogenic, endogenic and natural-technogenic geological processes, capable to render negative effect on habitation conditions of populations and its economic activities;

3. providing of state bodies, legal and physical persons items of information on weeping condition of geological environment and tendencies of its changes under affecting natural and anthropogenic factors for acceptance of administrative solutions in the field of rational usage and a protection of mineral resources;

4. the forecast of consequences of the economic activities dangerous to condition of geological environment;

5. provision of a recommendatory-expert level of results of an estimation, check and the forecast of condition of geological environment, and also elaboration of sentences on a substantiation of engineering - ecological projects of natural-regenerative, optimization and the security contents.
Within the framework of the first task it is the extremely impotent to divided actually oil pollutions from processes of natural outpouring fluids of terrestrial entrails. The carried out studies on Stockman structure have shown presence local and enough intensive anomalies of heavy metals in near-bottom waters, position which one-year from one year varies. Dimensioned connection of the heightened hydrocarbons concentration with fault structures is fixed in the Pechora Sea. Zones of underwater outpourings of fluids were repeatedly established on the data of the space photography in this area (given by M.B. Shilin).

The major task of federal monitoring is organization of observations from recent geodynamic processes. We, as well as many other sciences, repeatedly pointed to dimensioned agreement of many oil and natural gas fields of a shelf with zones of modem tectonic movements and necessity of the account of these factors at operation of drilling platforms and a pipeline transport. In this connection it is necessary to transfer from discrete observations of earth crust (profile and sound gravimetric-magnetic and seismological investigations) to permanent long-term measurements of changes of intensity of gravitational and magnetic fields in a real time with the help of the automated bottom stations with gravimetric and magnetometric modules. The given stations in any measure may fill deficiency of coast seismic stations and supply the information of the enterprise of an oil-and-gas complex.

It is the extremely important to schedule contours of mutual relation of monitoring mineral resources users, stipulated by license agreements, and federal services. This question now is intensively discussed. Thus there is an opinion that first is quite sufficient for providing ecological safety of development of an oil-and-gas complex.

Monitoring, which one should be carry out mineral resources users, is extremely relevant and directed on check of secure operation of the enterprises of an oil-and-gas complex. Therefore a basis of its directivity are technological processes: acoustic effect of permanent drilling platforms, heat effect of affecting of working gears on water, affecting of propellers of vessels on a sea bottom, specially in zones of a shallow water, change of a relief and bottom deposits at hydraulic engineering building (positioning of platforms, a cushion of pipe lines and so forth). Naturally the major task of such monitoring is check of chemical pollution of water strata and bottom deposits within the limits of license areas, especially during the supernumerary situations usually escorting by oil pouring. Thus as starting points of such check background characteristics of bottom sediments and the near bottom waters, received by federal monitoring services prior to the beginning of works. Now such background characteristics are available and, in our opinion, they should be included in license agreements necessarily.

Tasks of federal service of monitoring is alongside with establishing of already mentioned background characteristics, organization of a network of observations outside of license areas, in zones of accumulation of oil overflow products. It is especially important, as for area of oil-gas-extraction and intensive sedimentation where anthropogenic products are accumulated also, usually do not coincide. The role of federal monitoring in zones of an overload of hydrocarbons is veiy relevant. As have shown our observations in Kola bay, it is impossible to exclude roles of new reloading terminals in local pollution of water area. At least, the oil slicks watched by us at conducting together with MAGE of monitoring, may be immediately linked with the oil pouring. The federal service of monitoring also should provide check of modem geodynamic processes about what it was already spoken above and also to ensure objective check of the ecological information presented for mineral resources users in state bodies. The major function of federal monitoring there is a preparing of advisories on optimization of natural situation in zones industrial oil-gas-extracting and the zones of living of the population linked to them, and also involvement in emergencies together with bodies of the Ministry of Emergency Measures where operative and objective analytical check of condition of bottom deposits and near-bottom waters of zones of defeat should be adjusted.

Thus, experience of elapsed years demonstrates an imperative need of preservation of federal service of the shelf monitoring. That will allow the state to carry out on behalf of the authorized bodies effective check of performance of the environmental regulations by mineral resources users and receive the real ecological information for all shelf.

References
Ecological analysis in the Pechora Sea in 1992-1995 as the first experience of long-term all-up monitoring of marine water areas / G.G. Matishov, P. Mjalki, L.Grunlund et al. // Thesis's of a conference "Oil and gas of the Arctic shelf 2002. Outlooks today and tomorrow. Murmansk: a CD-disk, (in Russian)
Ivanov G.I., Gramberg I.S., Krjukov V.D. Levels of concentration of pollutants in a benthonic marine environment of the Western-Arctic shelf // Reports RAS. 1997. T. 355. №3. P. 365-368. (in Russian)
Zakharov M.S., Matveev Yu.L, Korneev O. Yu. Et al. Maintenance of the ecological control at development petroleum and gas fields of shelf of the arctic seas // Works RAO - 03. Ecological geology and rational nature using. Math. Conferences. SPb. 2003. P. 398-402. (in
Russian)
The Pechora sea. System studies. M.: "More". 2003. 502 pp. (in Russian)

ARCTIC SHELF OIL AND GAS CONFERENCE 2004