Environment Report 2019

ENVIRONMENT REPORT 2019

5.3 Accidental Oil Releases Breakdown

Releases by Oil Type Determining the oil product type is an important element of an oil spill response; it enables understanding of how the release will behave in the marine environment under varying conditions and helps to determine the appropriate response strategy. Diesel and light oils will be rapidly broken up by wind and wave action if released, after which they will evaporate. More persistent oil spills will be monitored and appropriate clean-up operations will take place, as described in the installation’s OPEP. This may include allowing the oil to break up through the action of wind and waves and then be digested by naturally occurring oil-degrading bacteria; mechanical recovery of oil at sea; use of dispersants to facilitate break-up of the oil; or active protection of sensitive areas along the coast, together with collection and recovery of oil along the shoreline, should it come ashore. In 2018, crude was the most common hydrocarbon type released, with 5.5 tonnes of crude accounting for 39 per cent of the total. There were 63 releases of crude, one of which was over 2 tonnes. The next largest category was diesel, of which 3.1 tonnes were released (22 per cent of the total), followed by lube oil (2.1 tonnes, 15 per cent).

Figure 33: Mass and Number of Oil Releases by Product Type, 2018

Condensate, 1.18 tonnes

Waste, 0.39 tonnes

Lube, 2.08 tonnes

Condensate Crude Diesel Hydraulic Other Lube Waste

Other, 0.25 tonnes

14

40

63

15

23

Hydraulic , 1.64 tonnes

Crude, 5.46 tonnes

72

66

Diesel, 3.08 tonnes

Source: OPRED, May 2019

46