Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-tf8b9 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-26T15:14:19.316Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Under what conditions can oil and gas developments in the Arctic be acceptable, and to whom?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 April 2009

Andrew C. Palmer
Andrew C. Palmer*
Affiliation:
Centre for Offshore Research and Engineering, Department of Civil Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore117576 ([email protected])
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

It is sometimes argued that the Arctic is so fragile that oil and gas development is never acceptable. Occasionally the argument rests on a fundamental objection to any development of fossil fuel resources. This paper will argue that under some conditions development can be carried out in a way that safeguards the natural environment, and that when the resources are exhausted all traces can be removed. This conclusion applies both offshore and onshore. It will require great sensitivity and care, and the application of the best technology developed by the petroleum industry for developments elsewhere. Some locations will have to be left inviolate until better technology is discovered, and perhaps for ever. The argument will be illustrated by case studies, some of them taken from completed projects.

Type
Research Article
Information
Polar Record , Volume 45 , Issue 2 , April 2009 , pp. 113 - 117
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2009

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Aboriginal Pipeline Group. 2006. Maximizing economic benefits through ownership in a Northern pipeline. URL: www.mvapg.com.Google Scholar
Campbell, D. 2007. Person of the year: Brendan Bell. Far North Oil and Gas 9 (4): 30–34.Google Scholar
Chandler, G. 2007. The price is right? Far North Oil and Gas 9 (2): 30–34.Google Scholar
Esso Imperial Oil. 2004. Mackenzie Gas Project submits regulatory applications. Press release 7 October 2004. URL: www.mackenziegasproject.com.Google Scholar
Lanan, G.A., Ennis, J.O., Egger, P.S., and Yockey, K.E.. 2001. Northstar offshore Arctic pipeline design and construction. Richardson, TX: Offshore Technology Conference (proceedings Offshore Technology Conference OTC 13133).Google Scholar
Lissaman, J., and Palmer, A.C.. 1999. Decommissioning marine pipelines. Pipes and Pipelines International 44 (6): 35–43.Google Scholar
Lomborg, B. 2001. The skeptical environmentalist: measuring the real state of the world. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Lomborg, B. 2006. How to spend $50 billion to make the world a better place. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Lopez, B. 1986. Arctic dreams: imagination and desire in a northern landscape. New York: Scribner.Google Scholar
Mackenzie Wild Declaration. 2006. Mackenzie Wild Declaration. Ottawa: Sierra Club of Canada. URL: mackenziewild.ca/declaration.Google Scholar
Matthiesen, P. 2006. Inside the endangered Arctic Refuge. New York Review of Books 53 (16): 33–36.Google Scholar
National Energy Policy (US). 2001. National Energy Policy. Washington DC: National Energy Policy Development Group.Google Scholar
Palmer, A.C. 1972. Settlement of a pipeline on thawing permafrost. Transportation Engineering Journal, Proceedings of the American Society of Civil Engineers TE3: 477–491.Google Scholar
Palmer, A.C., Baudais, D.J., and Masterson, D.M.. 1979. Design and installation of an offshore flowline for the Canadian Arctic Islands. Richardson, TX: Offshore Technology Conference (proceedings 11th Annual Offshore Technology Conference 2): 765–772.Google Scholar
Palmer, A.C. 2000. Are we ready to construct submarine pipelines in the Arctic? Richardson, TX: Offshore Technology Conference (proceedings 32nd Annual Offshore Technology Conference OTC12183).Google Scholar
Salokangas, R. 2005. The Gwich'in views of the Mackenzie Gas Project. Gwich'in Renewable Resource Board and Aurora Research Institute. URL: www.grrb.nt.ca.Google Scholar
Woodworth-Lynas, C.M.L., Nixon, J.D., Phillips, R., and Palmer, A.C.. 1996. Subgouge deformations and the security of Arctic marine pipelines. Richardson, TX: Offshore Technology Conference (proceedings 28th Annual Offshore Technology Conference OTC 8222, 4): 657–664.Google Scholar