ASSESSMENT OF THE ECONOMIC DAMAGE FROM THE IMPACT OF DANGEROUS UNEXPLOITED OIL WELLS ON THE ENVIRONMENT

Abstract

The mining and geological complex and, in particular, the oil and gas industry predominate now in the economy of our country. The development of hydrocarbon deposits, contributing largely to the Russian budget negatively influences the environment both directly on the territory involved as well as beyond it. Therefore it is vital to establish the comprehensive analysis of the environmental situation on the oil and gas productive areas and to access the environmental damage (ED) in order to opportunely displace or compensate it. One of the grounds of the negative impact provoking environmental damage are deep oil and gas wells , drilled by the state companies and later liquidated or temporarily closed down. The article is devoted to methodological and technological issues of the economic evaluation of the environmental damage from unexploited oil and gas wells in the unallocated subsoil fund of the Russian Federation. Analysis of the survey and comparison of the damage through separate ED components allow to make the following conclusions: 1. The largest damage arise from water pollution, because of the high (and most adequate to the current state of the situation) fine for wastewater discharge; 2. The damage from land pollution becomes significant , when the area of damaged land exceed 500 m2 and the intensity of pollution exceeds the average. The apparent underestimation of the fine paid is caused by obsolete regulation of the cost of land applied when assessing the damage. 3. The air pollution takes the lowest share of ED because of lack of substantial exhausts and the large distance between well and inhabited localities.