Improved understanding of accidental releases from oil and gas industries offshore.

近海石油和天然气工业活动可能会导致化学品不受控制或意外地释放到海洋和大气中，这是一种广泛的潜在情况。这些包括钻井和开采过程中的气体和液体泄漏，可能包括地表海水污染导致的碳氢化合物蒸发到空气中，以及通过管道和航运运输碳氢化合物期间散装或精炼产品的损失。这种排放有可能造成重大的环境影响，导致活动暂停，造成工业和政府收入的相关损失，并对公司的声誉造成严重损害。毫无疑问，许多小事件对环境的威胁很小，但由于缺乏背景数据，很难将重大事件与不重大事件区分开来。然而，在一次性或不受控制地向空气中释放的情况下，支持环境决策的科学或技术能力非常有限。2010年英国石油公司深水地平线事故表明，行业和监管机构都缺乏对排放规模进行快速评估的能力，也完全缺乏可以比较事件影响的背景大气数据。近海大气释放特别难以应对-只有航程/持续时间长、装备精良的大型研究飞机才能在实地进行必要的低空边界层测量。飞机取样平台必须有一个功能部署计划，其中包括经过测试的实验设计、先进的气相测量和可追踪性实验室能力以及适当的扩散模型。该NERC创新项目旨在直接解决从应对Total埃尔金事件中吸取的一些经验教训，并创建一个大大改进的强大能力，以支持北海和其他地方未来事件的决策。该项目旨在将环境科学和技术能力转化为支持石油和天然气部门在发生意外事件时的决策。使用一组具有代表性的FAAM 146调查飞行，在北海现有石油和天然气活动密集的区域建立甲烷和非甲烷碳氢化合物的背景变化和空间分布。应用创新的大气扩散建模工具，结合新的背景数据，估计当前活动产生的现有散逸性来源的规模和范围的统计分布。3.制定和测试一项反应计划，通过修改已经为FAAM飞机认证的大气科学研究仪器，检测和描述液体泄漏到海面的蒸发排放物，包括散装材料和精炼产品。与FAAM飞机运营商合作，为快速部署飞机以探测和应对北冰洋的石油和天然气事件制定运营计划和安全案例。

A wide range of potential scenarios exist where an uncontrolled or accidental release of chemicals to the ocean and atmosphere may occur, arising from offshore oil and gas industrial activities. These encompass gas and liquid leaks during the drilling and extraction process, potentially including hydrocarbon evaporation to air from surface seawater pollution, and the loss of bulk or refined products during hydrocarbon transport via pipelines and shipping. Such releases have the potential to create major environmental impacts, result in suspension of activities with associated losses of industrial and government revenues and cause severe reputational damage to companies. Undoubtedly many small incidents pose little environmental threat but the paucity of background data makes it difficult to separate significant from insignificant events.Emissions to the atmosphere from routine operational activities are legislated via national and international agreements. However there is very limited scientific or technical capability to support environmental decision-making during one-off or uncontrolled releases to air. The BP Deepwater Horizon accident in 2010 showed a lack of capability within both industry and regulators to undertake a rapid assessment of the scale of emissions, and a complete absence of background atmospheric data against which the impacts of the event could be compared. Off-shore atmospheric releases are particularly difficult to respond to - only large and well equipped research aircraft with long range/duration can make the necessary low level boundary layer measurements in the field. Aircraft sampling platforms must be supported by a functional deployment plan with a tested experimental design, advanced laboratory capabilities for gas phase measurement and traceability, and appropriate dispersion modelling. This NERC innovation project aims to address directly a number of lessons-learned from the response to the Total Elgin event, and create a much-improved robust capability to support decision-making for future events, in the North sea and elsewhere. The project aims to translate environmental science and technology capabilities to support decision-making in the oil and gas sector in the event of accidental events.Key aims are as follows:1. Using a set of representative FAAM146 survey flights establish the background variability and spatial distributions of methane and non-methane hydrocarbons in regions of intensive existing oil and gas activity in the North Sea.2. Apply innovative atmospheric dispersion modelling tools, in combination with the new background data, to estimate a statistical distribution of the scale and extent of existing fugitive sources from current activities. 3. Develop and test a response plan for the detection and characterisation of evaporative emissions from liquid spills to the sea-surface, including bulk materials and refined products, through modification of an atmospheric science research instrument already certified for the FAAM aircraft.4. Working with the FAAM aircraft operators develop an operational plan and safety case for the fast deployment of the aircraft for detection and response to oil and gas events in the Arctic ocean.