Report On Natural Gas Gathering System Design In The Mackenzie Delta Region

Author : Kavik-AXYS Inc
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (911 download)

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Download or read book Knowledge Gaps Associated with Exploration and Development of Natural Gas in the Mackenzie Delta Region written by Kavik-AXYS Inc and published by . This book was released on 2002 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The current level of activity associated with the natural gas reserves of the Mackenzie Delta region is unprecedented. As much as 7000 km of 2-D seismic and 1000 km2 of 3-D seismic was planned for the winter of 2000/2001 and more for 2001/2002 (KAVIK-AXYS and LGL 2001). The number and extent of seismic surveys has put pressure on Hunters' and Trappers' Committees and environmental review groups and raised concerns over potential cumulative environmental effects. The delineation of existing discoveries will further increase activity, as will the drive to develop reserves on the Delta (e.g., the Parson's Lake, Taglu, Devon, Kurk and Niglintgak leases) and construct a pipeline to transport natural gas and natural gas liquids via Norman Wells to northern Alberta. All concerned parties, including local people, industry, federal and territorial government agencies, co-management boards, environmental non-governmental organizations and regional governments have been increasing their levels of preparedness to deal with the possibility of formal proposals for development. If formal proposals are tabled, then regulatory authorities need to be confident they adequately understand the nature of both the proposed projects and the residual impacts after mitigation. There is, therefore, a need to forecast scenarios for development and anticipate the questions that environmental impact assessments (EIAs) will need to answer. The gaps in knowledge needed to evaluate these assessments must be filled now. These gaps include not just aspects of the ecology of the region but also gaps with respect to the availability and effectiveness of mitigation measures. The specific objectives of this review as stated in the Request for Proposals from ESRF are to: 1. document past and ongoing research in relation to the potential environmental impacts of natural gas exploration, development and gathering systems in the Canadian Mackenzie Delta and nearshore Beaufort Sea; 2. review the current state of this knowledge in part by organizing, facilitating, and reporting on a workshop of key stakeholders which includes expert researchers, scientists and decision makers involved in northern natural gas development in the above geographic region; and 3. provide a report that summarizes information gaps and potential areas for further research that will enable a comprehensive assessment of natural gas exploration, development and gathering systems in the Canadian Mackenzie Delta and the nearshore Beaufort Sea. This report is the result of a process that included preparation for a workshop, discussions at the workshop in Inuvik in January 2002, gap analysis, and review of comments on a draft report. The workshop brought together stakeholders that included scientific experts in a variety of fields, local people, interested parties and decision-makers. The prime purpose was to identify potential impacts to the environment and associated knowledge gaps. The workshop involved plenary sessions that provided overviews of development scenarios as well as breakout groups. Participants in the breakout groups identified potential impacts, mitigation measures and research and knowledge gaps for their particular discipline. All participants had the opportunity to review and comment on the draft report so that a final report could be submitted to the Environmental Studies Research Fund. ... The EIAs that may be developed for the Mackenzie Delta region will provide answers to the questions associated with project descriptions on a local and regional scale. The purpose of this exercise is to anticipate these assessments, stimulate the inception of critical new work and identify knowledge gaps for questions that are beyond the terms of reference of EIAs from proponents. This report is about information gaps associated with natural gas development in the Mackenzie Delta and the nearshore Beaufort Sea. This report is about natural gas exploration, development and gathering systems a nd the potential environmental impacts. The report is about research to determine and mitigate potential impacts; it is not about fundamental and basic scientific research. Table 1 provides a summary of the potential impacts, mitigation measures and knowledge gaps by discipline. Each of the discipline chapters discusses the material in Table 1 in more detail. There were three overarching considerations that came from this project as follows: 1. the urgent need to review the funding base for the Delta region; 2. the need for processes that will ensure dialogue and collaboration among all parties who have a stake in the future of the Delta region; 3. the recognition that the nature of industrial footprints are smaller and softer than they were in the past. Additional recommendations and conclusions are provided at the end of this report. Implementation of these recommendations will help all parties move forward" -- ASTIS [online] database.