Final draft Arctic Offshore Oil and Gas Guidelines (2009). (DRAFT)
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Issue Date
2008
Authors
Protection of the Arctic Marine Environment (PAME)
Subject
PAME
Abstract
These Guidelines are intended to be of use to the Arctic nations for offshore oil and gas
activities during planning, exploration, development, production and decommissioning
Recommendations on the transportation of oil and gas are found in the OGA, 2008. The
Guidelines should be used to help secure common policy and practices. The target group
for the Guidelines is thus primarily the authorities, but the Guidelines may also be of help
to the industry when planning for oil and gas activities and to the public in understanding
environmental concerns and practices of Arctic offshore oil and gas activities. While
recognizing the non-binding nature of these Guidelines, they are intended to encourage
the highest standards currently available. They are not intended to prevent States from
setting equivalent or stricter standards, where appropriate.
Policy development should take into account the domestic situation with respect to
political, economic, legal, and administrative conditions. Consideration should be given
to macro-economic effects, regional effects, and potential environmental impacts. Such
consideration should result in a staged opening plan, and ensure protection of areas of
special environmental concern. While these guidelines do not address socio-economic
aspects in any detail, nor do they set standards for assessment of potential socioeconomic
effects of offshore oil and gas activities, these are nonetheless important to
consider and integrate into the planning and conduct of exploration and development.
The Guidelines are intended to define a set of recommended practices and outline
strategic actions for consideration by those responsible for regulation of offshore oil and
gas activities (including transportation and related onshore activities) in the Arctic (see
Figure 1 and Annex A). It is hoped that regulators will identify the key aspects related to
protection of human health and safety and protection of the environment for the
management of offshore activities, while at the same time remaining sufficiently flexible
in the application of these management regimes to permit alternative regulatory approaches. It should be recognized that the eight Arctic nations have different systems
with different emphases on the division of responsibility between the operator and the
regulator. The goal is to assist regulators in developing standards, which are applied and
enforced consistently for all offshore Arctic oil and gas operators. Sensible regulation
will vary to some degree based upon local circumstances. Thus, it is expected that, based
on the outcome of environmental impact assessment procedures, regulators will establish
policies such that offshore oil and gas activities are conducted so as to provide for human
health and safety and protection of the environment.
Offshore Arctic oil and gas operations may result in a variety of related onshore
activities. Individual governments should determine the extent to which these Guidelines
apply when evaluating these activities.