Gulf of Mexico. In some cases, MPAs may not be formally declared, but sensitive habitats are explicitly avoided during field operations as part of the lease conditions. For example, in Norway, exploration drilling has occurred near the Pockmark-reefs in the Kristin oil field and the reefs of the Morvin oil field Ofstad et al. Direct physical damage was limited by ensuring the well location and anchoring points including chains were not near the known coral locations.
Similarly, in Brazil, impacts to deep-water corals must be avoided, and ROV surveys of proposed tracklines for anchors are typically conducted before or after installation.
Despite the requirements of many jurisdictions to avoid deep-water petroleum activities near sensitive habitats, it remains uncommon for legally mandated setback distances or buffer zone requirements to be specified. For example, there are no mandated separation distances of industry infrastructure and deep-water corals for both the Brazilian and Norwegian case studies, rather the need for spatial restrictions is evaluated on a case-by-case basis as part of the environmental impact assessment process.
BOEM has taken a precautionary approach and defined mitigation areas in which oil and gas activity is prohibited. These areas are determined from interpretation of seismic survey data. Previous studies have demonstrated that these seismic data can reliably predict the presence of chemosynthetic and deep-water coral communities Roberts et al. ROV surveys of the tracklines of anchors are typically conducted, but can occur after the installation of the infrastructure if the plan is approved. However, if the well is drilled near a known high-density community or archeological site, then visual surveys are mandatory prior to installation.
If the ROV surveys reveal high-density chemosynthetic or coral communities, the operator is required to report their occurrence and submit copies of the images to BOEM for review. Avoidance measures have to be undertaken for all potential and known high-density benthic communities identified during these assessments.
Beyond the borders of the BOEM mitigation areas, there are mandated set-back distances for oil and gas infrastructure in US territorial waters.
These distances are primarily based on a contracted study of impacts from deep-water structures CSA, The set-back distance for sea-surface discharges of drilling muds and cuttings was originally m, corresponding to the average distance over which impacts were detected in the CSA study. Following more recent discoveries of abundant deep-water coral communities in and near the hard-ground sites within the mitigation areas, the set-back distance was doubled to m feet. The set-back distance for the placement of anchors and other seafloor infrastructure is m feet from the mitigation areas, but this may be reduced to 75 m feet if a waiver is requested.
In addition to specific targets for avoidance or establishment of protected areas, the use of reference areas can also assist in spatial management, and in the testing of EIA predictions more generally. Comparison of reference sites with those proximal to industry operations allows the effects of drilling and routine operations to be assessed, properly attribute any changes in the ecological communities, and further inform spatial management practice Iversen et al.
Some real-time monitoring and responsive action has also been undertaken in the benthic environment. In Norway, Statoil has monitored the potential impacts on a coral reef system at the Morvin oil field, which included sediment sampling, video observations, sensors and sediment traps Tenningen et al. The sensor data were available in real time and enabled drillers to observe if selected reef sites were being impacted by drilling activities.
Regardless of the structure of the monitoring program, some periodic post-development assessments, both within the development area and in appropriate reference areas, are required to evaluate the efficacy of the implemented protections. Deep-sea species, assemblages, and ecosystems have a set of biological and ecological attributes e.
In general, deep-sea organisms are slower growing and more long lived than their shallow-water counterparts and their distributions, abundance, and species identity remain largely unknown at most locations. The combination of their sensitivity to disturbance and the direct threat posed by industrial activity of any kind should stipulate a precautionary approach to the management of deep-sea resources. A comprehensive management plan requires accurate environmental maps of deep-sea oil and gas production areas.
These maps could be more effectively generated by creating a central archive of industry-generated acoustic remote sensing data, including seismic data and bathymetry, and making these data available to managers and scientists via open-access platforms.
Predictive habitat modeling can also contribute to the development of distribution maps for specific taxa. Baseline surveys should be carried out first at a regional level if no historical data are available. Prior to industrial activity, comprehensive surveys should be carried out within the planning area including along pipeline tracks and in a comparable reference area outside of the influence of typical impacts at least 4—5 km.
Ideally, surveys should include high-resolution mapping, seafloor imagery surveys, and physical samples to characterize the faunal community and ensure proper species identifications, which should consist of a combination of classical and molecular taxonomy. We also recommend the inclusion of newer high-throughput sequencing and metabarcoding techniques for a robust assessment of biodiversity at all size classes Pawlowski et al. International collaboration with the oil and gas industry to develop and conduct basic scientific research should be further strengthened to obtain the baseline information required for a robust understanding of the ecology of these systems and the interpretation of monitoring results, both at local and regional scales.
We recommend that representatives of all habitat types, ideally based on a strategic regional assessment, should be granted protection. Any high-density, high-biomass, high-relief, or specialized i.
The definition of these significant communities will vary from region to region and will depend on national or international regulations within the region of interest, but the EBSA concept should be generally applicable. Given the likely proximity of sensitive habitats to oil and gas activities, and the potential for extremely slow centuries to millennia recovery from perturbation in deep waters, an integrated approach to conservation is warranted.
This will include spatial management in conjunction with activity management in the form of restrictions on discharge and the use of water-based drilling fluids, and temporal management in areas where industry activity is near breeding aggregations or seasonally spawning sessile organisms.
Most countries have an in-principle commitment to conservation that typically extends to deep-water ecological features. However, it is rare that mandatory set-back distances from sensitive features or extensions of spatial protections are included to ensure that industrial activity does not impact the habitats designated for protection. This is significant because these habitats, in particular deep-sea coral and cold-seep ecosystems, consist of central, high-biomass sites surrounded by transition zones that can extend at least m from the visually apparent border of the site to the background deep-sea community Demopoulos et al.
Considering the inherent sources of uncertainty associated with the management of deep-sea habitats, from the imprecise placement of seafloor infrastructure, to the variability in discharge impact distances, to the uncertainty in seafloor navigation and the locations of the sensitive deep-sea habitats and species, we strongly recommend that buffer zones be incorporated into spatial management plans. Based on what is known on distances over which impacts have been observed, we can propose a set of recommendations for appropriate buffer zones or MPA extensions from sensitive habitats Table 4.
Following the Deepwater Horizon spill, impacts to the deep-sea benthos were greatest within a 3 km radius with a signal detected within a 45 km radius Montagna et al. While distances derived from the spatial footprints of large spills might offer a solid precautionary approach in regions undergoing development for the first time, they may prove impractical in most settings.
Therefore, in regions of active leasing, the focus should be on the protection of suitably large, representative areas, while still allowing for industrial activity in the area. Table 4. Recommendations for the spatial management of deep-sea ecosystems in the vicinity of oil and gas industrial activity.
The size of the buffer zones around habitats should be based on the available information on the typical distances over which impacts of standard oil and gas industry operations have been documented. Produced water travels 1—2 km on average, elevated concentrations of barium a common component of drilling muds are often detected for at least 1 km from the source, and cuttings and other surface disposed materials, along with changes to the benthic community are often observed on the seafloor at distances of up to — m.
Considering that impacts can extend to 2 km, we recommend that surface infrastructure and any discharge sites should be at least 2 km away from known EBSAs.
A more conservative approach, based on the variability in water column current structure and intensity, would be to set the distance as a function of the water depth of operations, with the 2 km extent of typical impacts observed as the minimum distance. Seafloor disturbances from direct physical impacts of anchor, anchor chain, and wire laying occur within a m radius of activities.
Therefore, based on the combination of the typical impact distance and the transition zone to the background deep-sea community, we recommend that any seafloor infrastructure without planned discharges should be placed at least m from the location of these communities.
Temporal management should also be considered, particularly during discrete coral spawning events Roberts et al. Although these recommendations are based on a thorough review of available literature and the authors' extensive experience in several EEZs, the information on potential impact zones is still relatively sparse.
As a result, processes should be implemented that allow adaptive management to be implemented as more data become available. Management plans must clearly communicate quantitative conservation targets that are measurable, the set of environmental and ecological features to be protected, the levels of acceptable change, and any remedial actions required, increasing the capacity of the industry to better cost and implement compliance measures as part of their license to operate.
It is also in the best interests of scientists, managers, and industry alike to arrive at a common, global standard for deep-water environmental protection across EEZs, and it is our hope that this review represents a first step in this direction toward the integrated and comprehensive conservation of vulnerable deep-sea ecosystems.
EC and DJ wrote, edited and revised the text, created and edited figures and tables. TS contributed analysis and figures and edited and revised the manuscript. All authors contributed to the tables, wrote portions of the text, and edited the manuscript. The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
The members of the Oil and Gas working group that contributed to our discussions at that meeting or through the listserve are acknowledged for their contributions to this work. We would also like to thank the three reviewers and the editor who provided valuable comments and insight into the work presented here.
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In addition to being devastating for marine life, seismic airguns are the first step toward dangerous and dirty offshore drilling with associated habitat destruction, oil spills and contribution to climate change and ocean acidification. Oceana is working to halt the use of seismic airguns, and stop the expansion of dangerous offshore drilling. Projects to search for offshore hydrocarbons have multiplied in recent years. However, the economic interest in exploiting these resources does not run in parallel with the knowledge of their ecological value, as the studies of environmental impact by oil companies show.
All of the reports that Oceana has analysed contain serious deficiencies and in some cases even hide data, although this does not prevent them from being approved by the administrative processes. This is a time when we should be turning towards renewable energy alternatives, energy efficiencies, and conservation and not perpetuating our dependence on oil and gas. This problem will only get worse for the Chesapeake Bay and all those who live in the region:.
Now is not the time to gamble our renewable aquatic resources. It's far more prudent to meet our energy needs by pursuing energy efficiency and conservation now, and developing wind, solar, and other renewable sources for the future.
Offshore drilling is not worth the risk to the Chesapeake Bay. We must protect our national treasure. Coastal communities across the region rely on clean water and safe waterways for food, industry, recreation, and more. But offshore drilling threatens the people who live in these areas and the industries they depend on for their livelihood.
Offshore drilling poses unacceptable risks to communities throughout the watershed, our economies, marine life, and our environment. You can help defend our coasts by taking action against offshore drilling today. Stay up to date about the Bay! These experts are trained on how to clean oil from animals, rehabilitate them, and return them to the environment.
Oil destroys the insulating ability of fur-bearing mammals, such as sea otters, and the water repellency of a bird's feathers, thus exposing these creatures to the harsh elements. Without the ability to repel water and insulate from the cold water, birds and mammals will die from hypothermia.
Juvenile sea turtles can also become trapped in oil and mistake it for food.
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