Environment Report 2014

1. Foreword Welcome to Oil & Gas UK’s Environment Report 2014 . This year’s report presents data to show the overall environmental performance of the UK offshore oil and gas industry through the key metrics of emissions to the atmosphere, discharges to the sea, waste disposal and accidental releases. Data up to the end of 2013 are included (the latest full dataset), both a detailed analysis and a decadal trend analysis are provided and the key findings are given in the executive summary. In last year’s Environment Report we presented the results of an analysis of platform production wells on the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS) to determine how many are capable of natural flow and hence have the potential to spill oil. In this report we complete the picture by presenting an analysis of the subsea production well inventory. Of the 10,875 wells in the combined database, 992 platform wells and 543 subsea wells are capable of natural flow and 111 of these can flow at a rate greater than 5,000 barrels of oil per day. This analysis will be used to ensure that the oil spill response capability on the UKCS is appropriate and will help to determine the requirements for financial responsibility in the event of an incident. Throughout 2013/2014, the regulatory and management controls being applied to the marine environment continued to increase, for example, through the establishment of further Marine Protected Areas, Marine Plans and implementation of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive and European Offshore Safety Directive. The work undertaken by the Environment Directorate in support of these activities is detailed in Chapter 6, as is information on the significant studies undertaken to improve our knowledge of the marine environment. We hope you find the Oil & Gas UK Environment Report 2014 both informative and useful. To help improve and add value to next year’s report we welcome comments and questions from all stakeholders. Please address these to Mick Borwell, environment director, on mborwell@oilandgasuk.co.uk.

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

Mick Borwell Environment Director, Oil &Gas UK

page 5