Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Defining Boundaries and Managing of Wetlands in Oil and Gas Projects

Abstract

Abstract. This work's scope was to do EIA of oil projects in Tabasco, northern Chiapas and the south of Veracruz, Mexico, by means of the identification, boundary definition and classification of wetlands. Different protection and conservation measures were established in order to mitigate and compensate the possible impacts of the oil activity in the region. The application goes towards the environmental management of the projects of exploration and oil production to realise in zones with wetlands, with a robust environmental impact assessment supported in a systemic characterization of the areas using botanical, ecological and hydrologic and criteria. Using updated satellite imageries and orthophotos, which were verified with GPS, an inventory of wetlands was obtained, getting the specific final cartography delimited wetlands into the following kinds: Mangrove swamps, Hydrophytic vegetation, Transition zone and Flooding pastures. These criteria supported the assessment of beneficial and adverse impacts and the determination of the prevention, mitigation and/or compensation measures for each type of wetland. Observations. This modality of environmental impact assessment, allowed to get the authorizations in this subject for the projects of oil & gas exploration and production from the regulatory dependency that administers the country's environmental aspects Once the environmental authorization was obtained, it was implemented an accredited environmental overseer, represented by a degree granting institution, that has been worth and gives control to the development of Works, a work team that interacts with environmental overseer for the correct planning and execution of the works. Conclusions. The knowledge and classification of the wetlands ecosystems allows to establish specific strategies of managing, the conservation of the more sensible wetlands ecosystems such as mangrove swamp and the protection of wetlands in which oil extraction occurs, thus like an assessment and effective management of the environmental impact of oil projects. Contribution. The boundary of wetlands for EIA is an initiative without precedents in Mexico and the criteria of wetlands managing established in this study, could be applied for similar ecosystems around the world, preserving biodiversity and factor against the climate change.