Enhanced Oil Spill Detection and Consequence Management Through Satellite Imagery

Abstract

Abstract Objectives/Scope To outline how satellite technology can enhance oil spill detection and therefore consequence management, drawing on a comparative study of options by the Norwegian association of oil and gas operators; to use examples of successful detection in 2016 and 2017 in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar; to outline how collaborative satellite monitoring could be adopted by countries around the Arabian Gulf, possibly through ROPME/MEMAC or RECSO, patterned on Norway and the European Maritime Safety Agency's multistakeholder approach. Methods, Procedures, Process The presentation will begin with an explanation of the key benefits of using satellite technology for oil spill monitoring and enhanced consequence management, as well as the identification of likely polluters. It will use the case study method to demonstrate how it has been done successfully in 2016 and 2017 in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar; and finally, it will then provide a vision of how collaborative satellite oil spill monitoring and polluter identification could be used to great effect in the Arabian Gulf, by organizations such as ROPME and RECSO, modelled on examples from the Norwegian Clean Seas Association for Operating Companies (NOFO) and the European Maritime Safety Agency's (EMSA) multilateral monitoring program. Results, Observations, Conclusions The results of the paper will be twofold. First, the results of a recent 3year study by the association of Norwegian oil and gas operators, which looked at all the different technologies for detecting oil slicks (passive buoys, platform radar, maritime patrol aircraft, surface vessels and satellite imagery), examples will be summarized. That study concluded that satellite-based detection offers the best ratio of price to operational effect. Second, show examples of successes in identifying largescale oil spills in the Arabian Gulf with satellite imagery, such as the massive-scale blowout on an Iranian platform that happened on or about 8 March 2017, and which sent 9 separate oil slicks drifting towards the UAE. Other examples from Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE will also be used, including how polluting vessels off the coast of Al Fujairah have been successfully identified. Against the background of these results, a conclusion will be drawn, which is that significant benefits would accrue from the countries in the Arabian Gulf adopting a collaborative oil spill monitoring program based on effective satellite technologies. This challenge is particularly pressing given that an oil spill at one end of the Gulf will inevitably threaten beaches and delicate marine ecosystems at the other end. Novel/Additive Information While standard in Europe since 2007, use of satellite-based monitoring in the Gulf is neither widespread nor wellknown. This presentation aims to address that knowledge gap.