Long-term landscape impact of petroleum exploration, Melville Island, Canadian High Arctic

McCarter, Siobhan S.; Rudy, Ashley; Lamoureux, Scott F.

doi:10.1139/as-2016-0016

Cited by 1 publication

(1 citation statement)

References 30 publications

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“…Previous summaries of the impacts of seismic work focused mostly on the boreal forest in Canada (e.g., Dabros et al 2018). Broader studies of the cumulative impacts of Arctic oil development focused on infrastructure and its effects on permafrost (Orians et al 2003, Becker and Pollard 2016, McCarter et al 2017, Vincent et al 2017). Although this review is limited to landscape impacts, we also emphasize its broader relevance to the water, wildlife, and the people who depend on tundra resources for subsistence and recreation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Landscape impacts of 3D‐seismic surveys in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska

Raynolds

Jorgenson

Jorgenson³

et al. 2020

Ecological Applications

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Although three-dimensional (3D) seismic surveys have improved the success rate of exploratory drilling for oil and gas, the impacts have received little scientific scrutiny, despite affecting more area than any other oil and gas activity. To aid policy-makers and scientists, we reviewed studies of the landscape impacts of 3D-seismic surveys in the Arctic. We analyzed a proposed 3D-seismic program in northeast Alaska, in the northern Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, which includes a grid 63,000 km of seismic trails and additional camp-move trails. Current regulations are not adequate to eliminate impacts from these activities. We address issues related to the high-density of 3D trails compared to 2D methods, with larger crews, more camps, and more vehicles. We focus on consequences to the hilly landscapes, including microtopography, snow, vegetation, hydrology, active layers, and permafrost. Based on studies of 2D-seismic trails created in 1984-1985 in the same area by similar types of vehicles, under similar regulations, approximately 122 km 2 would likely sustain direct medium-to high-level disturbance from the proposed exploration, with possibly expanded impacts through permafrost degradation and hydrological connectivity. Strong winds are common, and snow cover necessary to minimize impacts from vehicles is windblown and inadequate to protect much of the area. Studies of 2D-seismic impacts have shown that moist vegetation types, which dominate the area, sustain longer-lasting damage than wet or dry types, and that the heavy vehicles used for mobile camps caused the most damage. The permafrost is ice rich, which combined with the hilly topography, makes it especially susceptible to thermokarst and erosion triggered by winter vehicle traffic. The effects of climate warming will exacerbate the impacts of winter travel due to warmer permafrost and a shift of precipitation from snow to rain. The cumulative impacts of 3D-seismic traffic in tundra areas need to be better assessed, together with the effects of climate change and the industrial development that would likely follow. Current data needs include studies of the impacts of 3D-seismic exploration, better climate records for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, especially for wind and snow; and high-resolution maps of topography, ground ice, hydrology, and vegetation.

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