Oil & Gas UK Seminar to Focus on Marine Planning Issues

The annual Oil & Gas UK Environmental Seminar, sponsored by Statoil, will this year focus on various aspects of marine planning issues in relation to offshore oil and gas activity.

The keynote speech will be delivered by Paul Wheelhouse MSP, Scottish Minister for Environment and Climate Change. He said: “The Scottish Government is fully committed to ensuring Scotland’s seas are effectively managed, with commercial uses and our duty to protect the environment carefully balanced, as set out in the 2010 Marine Act. Within that balance is a clear desire from government to back the sustainable development and economic growth of our marine industries.

“I’m confident that by working together we can ensure the right safeguards for the marine environment are in place and I look forward to meeting with a wide range of stakeholders at the Oil & Gas UK Environmental Seminar, as we explore these important issues.”

The seminar will take place between 8.30am and 4.30pm at Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre on Thursday 22 November. With each session featuring an open Q&A panel session, the day will be interactive.

The seminar will begin with a look at marine planning from a Norwegian perspective, environmental management systems in drilling and recent developments in oil spill waste planning. In the second morning session, the potential impact of underwater noise on marine mammals, remote sensing techniques for seabirds, and progress on DECC’s environmental submissions portal will be covered.

Extreme oceanography west of Shetland, regulation of oil spill waste management planning and lessons learned in oil spill response will be on the agenda in the afternoon along with predicting ocean currents, oil spill modelling and the use of subsea dispersant to tackle spills.

Oil & Gas UK’s Environmental Policy Manager, John Rintoul, said: “The oil and gas industry has a legal and moral obligation to effectively manage its activities in order to minimise the environmental footprint on the marine environment and to co-operate well with other users of the sea.

“This requires effective marine planning and management and a deep understanding of the environment and the areas where oil and gas activity can potentially have an impact.

“The annual Oil & Gas UK Environmental Seminar will bring together a wide audience from across the oil and gas industry with an interest in environmental matters. It’s an opportunity for senior leaders, environmental practitioners and operations managers to gather and get an overview of the types of issues at play and how they can impact their business.”

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November 20, 2012; Image: scottish.parliament.uk