No abstract

When planning response activities for an oil spill, decision makers must react to a wide range of circumstances. Decisions will vary depending on the type of petroleum product spilled and the nature of the impacted habitat. Response decisions will be based on tradeoffs dealing with the environmental consequences of the spilled oil and the response method selected, as well as the efficiency and effectiveness of the method. A new manual, Marine Oil Spill Response Options for Minimizing Environmental Impacts, is being jointly produced by industry and government to facilitate decision making for both prespill planning and incident response. Guidance will be provided through matrix tables indicating the relative environmental consequences of the different response options used for various categories of oil in open water and shoreline habitats. This paper describes the contents of the new manual.

The Musk Ox Producers' Co-operative was begun in 1969 under the «Musk Ox Project», a project aimed at domesticating muskoxen and harvesting their underwool («qiviut»), which would then be handknit into garments by Native Alaskan villagers. The aim of the co-op was to provide the cash income for the villagers without disturbing the villager lifestyle. It was reasoned that by using an Arctic animal to benefit an Arctic people, the villagers could gain income without losing their Native heritage and lifestyle. By examining the past and present status of the Co-operative we can evaluate the impact that it has had on the villagers compared to these original objectives

It is becoming increasingly important that scientific studies be conducted to determine the effects of a spill (and its cleanup) on the environment. Data are needed to assess environmental injury (e.g., for Natural Resource Damage Assessment, NRDA) and to set restoration targets. Data must be scientifically valid and timely to be of value in this process. To facilitate achieving these goals the Guidelines for the Scientific Study of Oil Spill Effects was prepared. By having scientific methods in place, no time is wasted developing them during the hectic early period of spill response. The guidelines should minimize the time spent reaching a consensus on how to conduct the work, thus minimizing the amount of ephemeral data that may be missed. By employing well-designed methods at the outset, the need for modification later is minimized. This peer-reviewed, multi-author, over 1,300-page document consists of guidance and methods for a wide variety of investigations. The document is organized into fourteen study elements: overflights, photodocumentation, and shore description; water column and oil source sampling; shoreline and sediment sampling; chemical analyses; intertidal biota; subtidal biota; tissue sampling and analysis; toxicity effects; birds and marine mammals; nekton; plankton; inland spills; quality assurance/quality control; and data management. Not all elements should necessarily be employed in every spill, and individual methods may require modification depending on circumstances. Also, there are many excellent, equally valid tools and approaches that are not included in the document, but their absence should not inhibit their use. To make the guidelines readily available to the public, the American Petroleum Institute will be posting it on their Web site.

One of the environmental constraints on oil and gas development on the North Slope of Alaska has to do with the need for causeways. Causeways have been used to support docking facilities, drilling and production facilities, and waterflood sea water treatment plants. The design preferred by industry is a solid-fill, gravel causeway. Many governmental permitting and resource agencies feel that the environmental effects of this design are unacceptable. Two solidfill gravel causeways have been built in the vicinity of Prudhoe Bay. It has been found that some alteration to circulation patterns and localized, temporary changes in nearshore fish habitat results from the presence of these structures. While some fear that this puts the fish populations at serious risk, no effects on the local fish population have been found. Nevertheless, other, more expensive and technically unproven (in Arctic) options, such as subsea pipelines and bridge type structures, have been proposed, as environmentally preferred alternatives. These should be site specific decisions. The increased difficulty in obtaining permits for gravel causeways may result in not being able to develop some nearshore reservoirs.