Prevention and Mitigation
TLC is actively researching and examining techniques used in the natural gas drilling process, with the goal of finding and requiring that less hazardous methods and materials be used.
Drilling Fluids
The following link lists 52 companies and 15 categories of fluids used specifically in offshore drilling. There is no listing yet for on-shore operations, but many of the companies serve both types. Completion Fluids Directory
Important concepts shown by the document:
- Many different fluids are going to be utilized over life of every well, during both the exploration and production phases,
- The lists show that several fluids for specific applications range from not toxic at all to very toxic.
In the event of a leak or spill it makes sense from a Landowner and greater community point of view to use the non-toxic or less-toxic substances and refresh the list as new fluids come on the market to serve drilling processes. We will work on ways to build these mechanisms into the TLC model lease.
PLONOR
One of the columns on the chart is titled PLONOR, Poses Little Or No Risk. A good explanation of the PLONOR chemical listing can be read in this article: http://www.epmag.com/archives/features/167.htm
Note that the OSPAR Convention is responsible for PLONOR and this link explains the role of OSPAR:
http://www.ospar.org/content/content.asp?menu=00010100000000_000000_000000
HOCNF
Another column on the chart is titled HOCNF, Harmonised Offshore Chemical Notification Format. A web search will bring up several definitions of what HOCNF is, for example here is the link to the Institute for Marine Resources and Ecosystem Studies: http://www.imares.wur.nl/UK/research/environment/projects/hocnf/
In a nutshell, drilling companies are required to use a standard format to document what, how much, where, and when fluids were used. Given that our area has several producing formations, estimated to take 30 to 50 years to develop, one can understand the value of a similar, persistent record. The industry currently reports HOCNF for offshore operations. Thus, we have a case that this requirement be used here, that it is a familiar requirement of development and that it is not onerous.
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