Presentation on effect of Hydrocarbons extraction and case study of santa Barbara oip spill

1. Hydrocarbon extraction from land - Impact on
flora, fauna, people and environment
DIGITAL ASSIGNMENT-1 ENVORONMENTAL STUDIES
Made by: Satyam Yadav
Reg No: 17BEE0161
Slot:(G2+TG2)
Submitted to: Dr. K. Thenmozhi
Assistant Professor - Senior
Department of Chemistry
Hydrocarbon extraction from land - Impact on flora,
. fauna, people and environment

3. Introduction
Hydrocarbon contamination in the environment is a very serious
problem whether it comes from petroleum, pesticides or other
toxic organic matter. Environmental pollution caused by
petroleum is of great concern because petroleum hydrocarbons
are toxic to all forms of life. Environmental contamination by
crude oil is relatively common because of its widespread use and
its associated disposal operations and accidental spills. Also the
hydrocarbon extraction plants and refineries for the purification
of the crude petroleum product requires large portion of land.
That is compensated by forest land, which left wildlife suffer.
Below is picture depicting the conditions of wildlife due to these
plants and refineries .

4. This is what happens to wilderness when oil and gas drilling takes their forests

5. Several ways Hydrocarbon extraction is bad news for the environment
• 1. Disruption of
wildlife migration
routes and
habitats from
noise pollution,
traffic and fences
2.Oil spills on
land and offshore
drilling sites
3. Landscape
changes from
well pads and
roads
4. Haze, toxic
chemicals and dust
pollute the air and
water
5. Dangerous
methane
emissions
contribute to
climate change

6. 1. Disruption of wildlife
migration routes and
habitats from noise
pollution, traffic and
fences
Biological systems are incredibly complex,
and can fall victim to serious ecological
consequences when disturbed by human
activity. Increased vehicle traffic at oil
drilling sites contributes significantly to
noise pollution in wildlands. Wild
mammals and birds respond to noise
disturbances with short-term avoidance
behavior, but many studies have
shown that these behaviors become
habituated. Negative impacts include
disruption of songbird communication in
breeding and nesting seasons, as well as
altered predator and prey dynamics.
Mammals habituated to traffic may be
more vulnerable to road kill.

7. 2. Oil spills on land and offshore
drilling sites
Oil operations on land require drilling fluids
(sometimes called "mud") that are injected into the
wellbore to lubricate the drilling bit. These fluids are
supposed to be captured in lined pits for disposal, but
very often they are spilled and splashed around the
well pad.
Certain inhaled and ingested chemicals in oil may:
• Damage animals’ organs such as the liver, kidney,
spleen or brain
• Cause cancer, immune system suppression and
lead to reproductive failure
• Further injured or disturb animals due to
response activities and long-term ecological
changes

8. 3. Landscape changes from well
pads and roads
Construction activities associated with oil and gas
drilling leave behind radical impacts to the
landscape. Well pad and road construction require
the use of heavy equipment such as bulldozers, road
graders and gravel trucks. Development of oil and
gas complexes:
Strip the environment of vegetation
• Increase erosion (which could lead to landslides
and flooding) and the opportunity for weed
infestation
• Disturb the land’s ground surface
• Seriously fragment once unspoiled wildlife
habitats
The impacts caused to public lands by construction
of oil and gas sites are often irreversible.

9. 4. Haze, toxic chemicals and
dust pollute the air and water
Open pits, ponds, and lagoons can
contain wastewater, organic chemicals,
petroleum hydrocarbons, surfactants
and other substances which
compromise the safety of our water.
Pipeline explosions and wells (even if
properly drilled) can cause drinking
water problems by cross-contaminating
aquifers. Development of gas wells may
even require releases of methane and
myriad toxic gases into the
atmosphere.

10. 5. Dangerous methane emissions
contribute to climate change
Methane, the main component in natural
gas, is up to 84 times more harmful to
the atmosphere than carbon dioxide,
trapping heat more effectively and
intensifying global warming.
Preventable leaks and faulty
infrastructure in natural gas production
are so common that they contribute
significantly to methane pollution in and
around wild lands. In recent years,a
noxious methane plume the size of
Delaware was discovered hovering above
the Four Corners region of New Mexico.
Oil and gas companies also often
deliberately discharge methane into the
air through venting, the controlled
release of natural gas, and flaring, the
burning of it off in the air.

11. Oil Spill??
Oil Spill is accidental or
intentional release of liquid
petroleum hydrocarbon
into the ocean or coastal
waters due to human
activities mainly.

12. Causes of Oil Spills
•Sinking or leakage of Oil
carrying vessels or Oil pipelines
•Illegal dumping by industries
•Countries at war
•Terrorist activities
•Natural Disasters

13. •Effects entire marine life
•Blocks entrance of oxygen in water
•Fishes hatch with twisted spines and deformed hearts
•Effects the food web when oil reaches sea bed
•Natural recovery process may require upto 10 years
Effects of Oil Spills

14. 1.
• The Santa Barbara oil spill
2.
• Exxon Valdez spill.

15. Offshore oil and gas
in California
Offshore oil and gas in California provides a significant
portion of the state's petroleum production. Offshore oil
and gas has been a contentious issue for decades.
Knowledge of the probable existence of oil off the coast
of California dates back to the early European explorers
who noted oil slicks in the Santa Barbara channel.
Offshore drilling began in California in 1896, when
operators in the Summerland Oil Field in Santa Barbara
County followed the field into the ocean by drilling from
piers built out over the ocean. At least 187 offshore oil
wells were drilled in the Summerland Field by 1902. A
number of other coastal fields were extended offshore in
Santa Barbara,

16. The Santa Barbara oil spill
The Union Oil Company discovered the Dos Cuadras oil field in federal waters of the Santa Barbara Channel
in 1968, but success turned to disaster in 1969, when large quantities of oil began escaping to the sea floor
near a drilling well in the field. The resulting oil slick came ashore along 35 miles (56 km) of coastline in
Santa Barbara County, and turned public opinion against offshore drilling in California.

17. The 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill that changed oil
and gas exploration forever
The Santa Barbara oil spill of 1969 spewed an estimated 3-million gallons of crude oil into the ocean, creating an oil slick 35
miles long along California’s coast and killing thousands of birds, fish and sea mammals.
Following the spill, the region became ground zero for some of the most significant conservation efforts of the 20th century.

18. Expansion of the spill
The disturbances on the surface of the
ocean, which began to appear only 14
minutes after the blowout, expanded
during the next 24 hours. The largest
was a dramatic boil-up about 800 feet
(200 m) east of the platform; another
smaller disturbance broke the ocean
surface about 300 feet (100 m) west of
the platform, and several smaller areas
of bubbling could be observed around
the platform itself. Even after the well
was further plugged at the platform
with drilling mud during the next week,
these continued to boil up.[24]
Investigators later determined that oil
and gas was emerging uncontrolled
through five separate rips on the ocean
floor.

19. Media coverage and public response
– Media coverage of the spill was intense from the moment the oil reached the shore. The spill was the major
headline in many morning newspapers on February 5, also receiving wide coverage on radio and television. The
same morning, a U.S. Senate subcommittee interviewed local officials as well as Fred Hartley, president of Union
Oil, on the disaster in the making. Three major television networks were there along with over 50 reporters, the
largest media turnout for any Senate subcommittee meeting since the Committee on Foreign Relations
discussed the Vietnam War.[35] During the meeting, local officials made their case that the Federal government
had a conflict of interest, in that they were making money from the same drilling they were mandated to
oversee and regulate. Hartley defended Union's record and denied that the event was a disaster:
– "I don't like to call it a disaster, because there has been no loss of human life. I am amazed at the publicity for the
loss of a few birds."

20. Environmental effects
The environmental effects of the spill were immediate and dramatic. At least 3,686 birds died – those being the ones
that were counted; an unknown number died unseen. Some marine mammals, such as sea lions and elephant seals
died, although the numbers are unknown.[39] Effects on other organisms varied. Fish populations seemed to be
unaffected in the long term, although data from 1969 showed a drop in counts of several species. Authors of a Marine
Fisheries Review study were unwilling to make a firm link with the oil spill, since other variables such as water
temperature and a subsequent nine year could not be ruled out as causes of the divergence.[53] Intertidal organisms
such as barnacles (chthamalus fissus) were killed in large numbers, with mortality in some areas as high as 80 to 90
percent.
Overall, long-term environmental effects of the spill seemed to be minimal. Because first, creatures there may have
evolved a tolerance to oil in the water due to the presence of natural seeps in the vicinity for at least tens of
thousands of years; the area around Coal Oil Point has one of the most active natural underwater oil seeps in the
world. Second, the abundance of oil-eating bacteria in the water may be greater because of that routine presence of
oil in the water. Third, the spill happened between two large Pacific storms; the storms broke up the oil, scattering it
more quickly than happens in many other oil spills, and additionally the sediment load in the seawater from freshwater
runoff would have been greater, and this assisted the oil in quickly sinking. Fourth, Santa Barbara Channel crude oil is
heavy, having API gravity between 10 and 13, and is both minimally soluble in water, and sinks relatively easily.
Therefore, fish and other organisms were exposed to the oil for a shorter time than was the case with other oil spills,
such as the 1967 Torrey Canyon spill in which the crude was lighter, and emulsified during treatment with massive
quantities of toxic dispersants and detergents, causing it to remain in place longer.

21. PREVENTIONS
 Double-hulling - build double hulls into vessels, which
reduces the risk and severity of a spill in case of a
collision or grounding. Existing single-hull vessels can
also be rebuilt to have a double hull.
 Secondary containment - methods to prevent releases
of oil or hydrocarbons into environment.
 Blowout Preventer
 Well castings

22. Making shipping safer
 Ship crew must be well trained and experienced
 Strict fire safety regulations apply on board
 Individual tanks within ships should be limited in size
so that spills are smaller
 Vessel traffic control to be used in more congested
areas to reduce the risk of collision

23. Keeping the navigator informed
• Up to date information on changing
weather conditions.
• Interpretation of radar and satellite image
reports for sensitive coastal areas and
inland water routes.
•
• Computer based video-display that allows
navigators to track the ship course in
relation to hazards and warns the
navigator.
• Monitoring and control equipment on
ships; discharged oil-water mixtures can
be traced back to the ship that was
carrying the oil.

24. There are a number of methods which may apparently be used to deal with oil spills in
seawater. Some options used for marine protection from oil pollution include:
•Mechanical Collection
•Chemical Dispersants
•Naturally available materials
Methodology

25.  Most oil spills and most serious accidents are caused by human error, so this can be
reduced if one takes extreme precautions and proper safety assessments
 Focusing on many techniques such as Blowout preventer and well castings can contain the
oil spill
 Use of naturally available materials such as CORCHORUS DEPRESSUS, ARACHIS HYPOGAEA,
BENTONITE CLAY & ACTIVATED CARBON helps containing the spill
 Hydrocarbon extraction is benificial if it is not over exploited and precautions are taken in
the extractions process, keeping in mind about other living being health also.
CONCLUSION