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surveys can cause surface scarring due to surface traffic. Exploratory drilling, to confirm the oil deposit and determine production engineering details, can begin to contaminate the environment—on an initially small scale—through oil spills,
road construction, produced water,
and other wastes. Scaling up to development of large oil fields requires construction of infrastructure—roads, pipelines, power lines,
temporary housing, and well pads. The road infrastructure can increase sedimentation and change drainage patterns, especially in flood plain areas. Spills and produced water removal during the production stage can cause substantial impact if environmental procedures are not carefully designed and implemented. Effects on air quality from gas flaring and pump sprays are another adverse impact. During decommission, the production wells are abandoned, leaving enduring scars unless the land is reclaimed and revegetated. The social impacts to the indigenous people include those that are directly measurable (food
and resource contamination, reduction, or elimination) and those that are less susceptible to measurement (quality of life).
Methods of management and environmental protection during high-latitude oil exploration and production have been improved in recent years. These new methods include better personnel training, more environmentally friendly operational procedures, and improved environmental awareness on the part of top management and operational staff. The procedural framework for environmental management
includes environment profiles, environmental impact assessments
(preliminary and advanced), monitoring, and auditing.
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