Research and Monitoring to Support Responsible Offshore Oil and Gas Development in the Presence of the Western Gray Whale Population off Northeast Sakhalin, Russia

Abstract

AbstractExxon Neftegas Limited (ENL) is developing oil and gas reserves on the continental shelf off northeast Sakhalin Island, Okhotsk Sea, Russia. These projects are located in proximity to a habitat used by the Korean-Okhotsk or Western North Pacific gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus), hereafter referred to as the Western Gray Whale (WGW). The WGW population is listed as endangered in the Russian Red Book and as critically endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). ENL has a long history of monitoring the WGWs in partnership with Sakhalin Energy Investment Company, Ltd. (SEIC), resulting in one of the most comprehensive data sets on marine mammal ecology and anthropogenic impacts at both the individual and population levels. The robust dataset resulted in the development and implementation of mitigation plans to address major risks to the population and, through a recent tagging / satellite monitored telemetry effort, provided important insights into Pacific basin-scale movements of the population. This paper provides an overview of: ENL's initial studies and protection plans to address WGW ecological data gaps and risks to the population.Methodologies of and summary results from the comprehensive ENL-SEIC Joint Monitoring Program to monitor impacts of industry operations.Results from a tagging / satellite monitored telemetry program funded by ENL and SEIC to better assess the risks to the WGW population across its annual life cycle, including areas outside the immediate vicinity of industry operations off Sakhalin Island.The start of offshore commercial oil and gas development on the northeastern Sakhalin Shelf in the mid-1990's necessitated a thorough review of environmental and socioeconomic conditions throughout the project area (Sakhalin Island, adjacent seas, and a portion of the Khabarovsk Krai; Figure 1). ENL, operator of the Sakhalin-1 Consortium, is committed to conducting business in a manner that is compatible with the balanced environmental and economic needs of the communities in which it operates. In preparation for a comprehensive Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and State Ecological Expert Review (SEER) process, as required under Russian Law, ENL initiated studies of the environmental and socioeconomic sensitivities of the Sakhalin-1 Project area.WGWs (Figure 2) were identified as a species of primary concern on the northeast Sakhalin shelf due to its listing as critically endangered by IUCN and Category I (endangered) listing in the Red Book of the Russian Federation. In addition, a joint declaration of the Gore–Chernomyrdin Commission, "On Measures to Ensure Biodiversity Conservation in the Sakhalin Island Area" was issued in February 1997, with one specific goal listed as enhancing research cooperation on the WGWs. ENL evaluated the results and recommendations from the project EIA and SEER processes, as well as recommendations by the bilateral commission, and co-funded studies to increase the understanding of WGW ecology, and to monitor the impact of the Company's oil and gas developments on the WGW population. The preliminary study results were combined with existing knowledge from other regional researchers to form the basis for mitigation and monitoring for ENL's 3-D seismic surveys in 2001 for its Odoptu field off northeast Sakhalin.