V.V.Dyachuk

Ukrniigas, Ukraine

 

 

Geoethics and some problems of oil and gas industry

 

 

            By its specificity the oil and gas industry is an environmental hazard because of its being a source of different waste products derived from the industry’s production during many of its stages. It often creates a pollution problem owing to imperfect technological processes and the utilization of various alkalis, acids catalysts, inhibitors, odorants and other aggressive substances.

 

            One of the pollution sources is drilling enterprises. They are widely distributed at vast territories and appear to be a serious hazard for the ecology of entire regions affecting the «biosphere» as the Earth’s mantle where life is developed, and «noosphere» as a contemporary stage of biosphere.

 

            The notion of «noosphere» according to V.I.Vernadsky «enables us to consider the historical development of mankind as a continuation of biogeochemical history of biosphere’s living substance» /1/. Noosphere is a new geological phenomenon on Earth that is responsible for man becoming a great geological force which by thought and labor influences on the radical environment changes. In this respect moral (ethical) approach to rational detection, development and utilization of natural resources assumes a new significance. In this respect efforts of Doctor Václav Nìmec and the International Committee on geoethics, concerning the development of a new scientific trend - science of virtuous relation to Earth and its resources - geoethics, seem to be quite actual. According to I. Kant «ethics in ancient times meant a study on morals in general (philosophy morals) which was also considered as a study on debt...which...in its turn is divided into the study on law... and a study on virtue (Ethica)». »The ability and firm intention to offer resistance to powerful...enemy of moral views in us is virtue...Virtue should not be determined and appraised as a practice and an acquired habit to ethically good behavior. If virtue is not a result of the influence of well-considered, firm and more pure principle propositions it is, as any other mechanism of practical mind, unarmed... for guarding itself sufficiently against changes caused by new temptations...»/2/.

 

            We consider geoethics as a comprehensive science with the goal to regulate life security processes on Earth in general, and in all mutual relations with its bowels in particular from the point of view of high moral.

 

            In regard to moral approach to the environment and mineral resources, in Ukraine conducted is a great volume of researches on revealing pollution sources, gathering, treating and utilizing waste products obtained, particularly, during the drilling of prospecting, exploratory and development wells.

            The national program «Oil and Gas of Ukraine up to 2010» provides to increase general volumes of drilling by 74% and to gain 1 million 45 thousand m in 2010. A 2.3 fold increase of the drilling volume is planned. At the average depth of 3000 m this would amount to about 350 wells a year. In this respect a considerable enhancement of the technogeneous load on the environment is expected.

 

            Sources of chemical pollution at well sites are sludge, washing fluids and agents of their treatment, weighting agents. A great amount of sewage water contaminated by dispersed clay, crude, lubricating materials, oils, chemical agents, salts, drilling cuttings and so on is accumulated in ground pits. The sewage water in the pits practically is not treated, only settled. Its disposal to opened ponds causes contamination of the latter.

 

            Parallels with the pollution of opened ponds contaminated are ground waters. Taking into account that a settling pit is a trench measuring 45x30 m and 3m in depth, the liquid content with all dissolved components are infiltrated. When the pit is empty it is filled up with ground and a peculiar sepulchre is formed with contaminating matters. At the same time world practice offers burial of industry and domestic waste by insulating the reservoirs with waste from water-bearing horizons of ground waters by polymer coatings /Recycling Co, USA/. An approach of such kind in solving a concrete problem is based not on an economic advantage at any price but is inspired by care of the welfare both of the present and future generations and greatly corresponds to high moral principles, virtuous, ethical relation to the environment/

 

            One of the most typical environment pollutants linked with oil and gas well drilling are oil products which are constituents of drilling mud, formation water and rocks of oil and gas-bearing horizons. Work /3/ presents the results of researches conducted by Ukrainian scientists who determined that drilling sludge contains oil products in lubricant, film, drop and accumulation forms. Drilling mud and drilling wastewater contain oil films, emulsions. The content of oil products in soils within the humus bed is 2-3 times more than the background concentrations. Migrating at great distances from the well they are accumulated on the surface of humus bed particles (resin, asphaltene, cycling compounds) of lower horizons (alkanes). The latter are not easy assimilated by microorganisms and for a long time are preserved at  anaerobic conditions. During the last ten years the pollution of subsurface water horizons has sharply increased when drilling oil and gas wells by industry sewage water containing synthetic surfactants utilized for washing fluid treatment, by oil and oil products, heavy metals, chlorine organic compounds and radioactive substances. Danger of subsurface water contamination is conditioned by the possibility of industry sewage water and pollutants getting into the water-bearing horizons.

 

            Such situations occur quite often during oil and gas well drilling and cementing when drilling mud penetrates into the beds and washing fluids are absorbed during cross-flows of liquid hydrocarbons and highly mineralized water to the upper horizons. Emergency blowouts and uncontrolled flowing of oil, gas, gas condensate and mineralized water appear to be a serious hazard. Such accidents cause the penetration of drilling mud, drill cuttings, oil, fuel and lubricating materials, chemical agents, weighting agents and other contaminating substances into surface ponds. Taking into account that drilling sites are widely spread and are located at great distances from each other a centralized approach for utilizing deleterious wastes after drilling is hampered. In this respect, many specialists consider actual the construction of small mobile units for in-situ liquid waste treatment /4/. For this purpose the Ukrainian scientists have worked out a technological process, a technical project and a test specimen of a mobile unit for treating liquid drilling waste by applying methods of coagulation, gravitation settling and centrifugal dehydration /4/. Though this development assists in solving the problem partially, it is from the point of view of morals an example of ethical relation to the environment.

 

            Another perspective trend in decreasing the technogenous impact on the environment with simultaneous improvement of the economical indices is the widespread utilization of industry waste materials when producing drilling mud. Thus, the specialists of the JSC «Ukrneft» and Ivano-Frankivsk Central Research Laboratory have developed small-phase oil-emulsion drilling mud on the basis of vegetable oil production products that can be used for stripping oil-bearing beds with abnormally low formation pressure /5/. The State University of Chernovtsy completed the researches on developing new oil-well cement on the basis of materials of technogenous origin. As a result, new oil-well cement solutions characterized by high sedimentation resistance, low water loss and a wide range of density are recommended. The cement stone from these solutions is of high strength, permanent, corrosion resistant in aggressive media, low permeable and high adhesive with the casing string. This gives the possibility of using these oil-well cements at different mining-geological conditions and simultaneously to lower the technogenous impact on the environment /5/.

 

            Another trend of utilizing industry waste products is their use in producing drilling mud with definite features. Thus, the Ivano-Frankivsk University of oil and gas has conducted investigations on replacing traditional chemical agents to achieve the necessary reological parameters by such waste as: ashslag, sludge of water treatment and others. The results have shown that these additives are efficient in weighting the drilling mud, and the problem of utilizing technogeneous waste is solved /6/.

 

            It should be noted that the utilization of waste of different origin is one of the complicated problems of mankind. Not more than 5% of the total volume of waste in the world is neutralized and processed. We consider the utilization of one industry waste in technological processes of other industries to be an im portant geoethical task.

 

            An example of complex approach to the production of ecologically safety drilling mud is the elaboration of the Central Scientific Research Laboratory of the JSC «Ukrneft» where formulations of drilling mud on the basis of biopolymers were developed and field-tested. They are untoxic, unbiodestructural and can be used at different well drilling conditions.

 

            Besides, special liquids on the basis of maize extract - byproduct of the food industry, were developed and are used during well overhaul /7/.

 

            When drilling prospecting, exploratory and development wells, emergency blowouts and uncontrolled flowing of oil, gas gas-condensate and mineralized water takes place. As a result, the pollution of great territories, surface ponds and subsurface water is possible. In this connection enterprises of Ukraine create new drilling units equipped with high efficient blowout preventer equipment of home production / OJSC, Koral, State Research Institute of Safety Precautions and so on/.These units will be equipped with automatic control systems, communication and signaling facilities providing measurement, indication and recording of 27 parameters of the drilling process, fulfillment of explosion-fire-proof requirements /8/.

 

            The given above show that most of the specialists of the oil and gas complex of Ukraine understand the interrelation of the processes taking place on Earth both of technogeneous and natural character, foresee the consequences for the present and future generations. Despite of the hard economical situation conducted is a great volume of researches and practical work on gathering, treating and utilizing industry waste products obtain, particularly during deep well drilling, on methods of re-cultivation, burial of field water, creation of closed production cycles etc. Thus, the question is about virtuous, ethical relation to the solution of economic problems.

 

            I would like to conclude by Aristotle remark «virtue is the middle of two evils: redundancy and deficiency» /9/ and Goratsy’s remark «measure is needed for all and everything, finally there are limits nearer and further of which there cannot be good on Earth» /10/.

 

 

Literature

 

1.  V.I.Vernadsky - Beginning and eternity of life. Moscow, Sov.Russia, 1989, 700p.

2.   I.Kant - Works in six volumes, v.1, p. 435, M. I963.

3.  V.V.Karabin - «Pytania rozvytku gaz. prom. Ukrainy», issue XXVI, Kharkiv, 1998.

4.   I.V.Plakhetko and oth. - Unit for treating rare drilling cuttings. «Nafta i gaz Ukrainy», v.2, Iv.-Frankivsk, 2000, p.9-11.

5.  Y.S.Kotskulich - Trends of developing the technique and technologies of oil and gas well drilling in Ukraine. «Nafta i gaz   Ukrainy», v.2, Frankivsk, 2000, p.11.

6.   L.I.Chelyadin, V.L.Chelyadin - Researches of the impact of mineral and technogenous additives on drilling mud endices and ecology. «Nafta i gaz Ukrainy», Iv.-Frankivsk,vol.3, 2000, p.324-326.

7.  A.M.Mulenko - Construction of a high efficient and ecologically safety drilling rig. «Nafta i gaz Ukrainy», v.2, 2000, p.315-316.

8.   A.M.Andrusyak - Concerning ecologically safety drilling muds. «Nafta i gaz Ukrainy», Poltava,  1998, p.312.

9.   Ethics of Aristotle, SP, 1908, p.31.

10.  Goratsy - Complete works, M.-L., Academia, 1936, p.210.