The proposed
use of seismic air guns in the search for offshore oil and gas reserves along
the U.S. East Coast could
injure or kill nearly 140,000 marine animals annually and disrupt the vital
activities of other species, a new study says. The seismic testing, in which
guns filled with compressed air are fired repeatedly over deep-sea target areas
to provide energy companies an image of the deposits below, would threaten
marine species of all sizes, from tiny fish eggs to large whales, according to an
analysis by the conservation group Oceana. The group said that the powerful
air gun blasts, which it describes as “100,000 times more intense than a jet
engine,” could disturb the breathing, feeding, and mating habits for dolphins
and whales and cause injury or death to endangered species such as the North
Atlantic right whale. The analysis comes as the U.S. Interior Department’s
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management completes an environmental study on the
potential effects of seismic activities from Delaware to Florida. Oil industry
officials point to other research that shows seismic testing is unlikely to
threaten marine mammals.
The industry case, with some rebuttals by Oceana, is given
in this longer report
by Jennifer A. Diouhy at Fuelfix:
Industry representatives note that
seismic technology has advanced dramatically in recent years — one reason that
oil companies are eager for a look at data from the East Coast, where research
is decades old. Geophysical survey companies also can tailor the timing of
their studies to avoid animal migrations and minimize disruption.
Industry officials also point to
research that shows slim prospects of physical harm to marine life from seismic
surveys. For example, during a 2012 study by scientists in San Diego that aimed
studying the way marine mammals experience temporary losses in hearing
sensitivity, the researchers could not induce the problem after exposing a
dolphin to 10 impulses from an air gun. “None of the dolphins has exhibited
significant behavioral reactions,” the scientists concluded. “These data
suggest that the potential for seismic surveys using air guns to cause auditory
effects on dolphins and similar delphiniums may be lower than previously
predicted.”
Chip Gill, the president of the
International Association of Geophysical Contractors, stressed that seismic
analysis helps boost the odds that oil and gas companies will drill promising
wells — rather than dry holes — effectively limiting the industry’s potential
footprint. “We used to explore with a drill bit,” Gill said. “There’s a strong
argument that seismic surveys could be the preferred environmental tool.”
Oceana recommends federal
regulators require geophysical contractors adopt minimizing techniques, if they
allow any seismic research along the East Coast. That could include use of
less-disruptive seismic technology — not dependent on air guns — even though it
may be a few years away. “If seismic testing is going to occur, (the Department
of Interior) should require it be done using the least harmful technology
available,” Oceana said in its report. Regulators also “should permanently
close large areas to seismic surveying and drilling to protect vulnerable
habitats and species.”
Marine biologists say the
government statistics don’t capture the potential damage, some of which
manifests slowly over time. “For marine mammals that are more sensitive to
sound and depend greatly on their hearing, such as whales and dolphins, the
airgun noise can be a severe threat,” Oceana said. In the case of low-frequency
noise, “the sound can travel thousands of miles away from the airgun source,
interrupting whale calls and altering their behavior even at great distances.
Fin and humpback whales in a 100,000 square mile area stopped singing in the
North Atlantic because of such noise, and bowhead whales have abandoned their
habitat because of it in Alaska.”
Although the Obama administration’s
five-year plan for selling offshore oil and gas leases through 2017 does not
include any planned auctions of Atlantic waters, a new generation of seismic
research could pave the way for future drilling in the region. Data indicating
potential big untapped resources could add pressure for future administrations
to lease Atlantic tracts and help plan any auctions in the area. The geological
and geophysical surveys also would be used to dictate the siting of future
renewable energy installations offshore and help pinpoint areas for sand and
gravel mining.
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