The Trudeau government and that of Newfoundland and Labrador have given the green light to the first oil drilling in a “marine refuge” on the east coast supposed to protect biodiversity and endangered species. The oil company BP, responsible for the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, is piloting this exploration project in a region that could contain more than four billion barrels of oil.
BP Canada chartered the imposing ship Stena IceMAX to drill this first exploration well within the limits of one of its permits located more than 400 kilometers off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador. The drilling, which should begin in May and last 60 to 120 days, will be carried out in an area where the water depth reaches 1339 meters.
In a very brief response to questions from the Duty, the fossil fuel multinational has simply reiterated its desire to complete a well. “After that, we will assess the next steps,” BP added. The company did not want to advance on the potential of the region, referred to as the “Orphan Basin”, which could contain more than four billion barrels of oil. By comparison, the Bay du Nord project, approved last year by Ottawa, would contain one billion barrels.
The Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board (C-TNLOHE) confirms that the exploration license granted to BP Canada is located within the limits of the most important “marine refuge” created by the government. Trudeau off the east coast of Canada. This area of more than 55,000 km2 is one of the marine environments that have been protected in order to achieve the biodiversity conservation objectives for 2020.
In order to guarantee the protection of the “fragile” ecosystems found there, the government prohibits “any fishing activity coming into contact with the bottom”. Furthermore, “no human activity incompatible with the conservation of the ecological components of special interest may be carried out or planned in the area”, which partly overlaps “an ecologically and biologically significant area which supports a great diversity, including several species in decline”.
Spill
The report published in 2020 by the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (AEIC), which related to a project of 20 BP wells in the region, including the one that is starting, however specified that “the exploration activities oil and gas are not prohibited”.
He also insisted on the richness of marine biodiversity. “The Project area and surrounding marine environments are used by fish and invertebrate species of commercial, cultural or ecological value, and support regionally important areas for marine biodiversity and productivity,” reads the statement. this report. There are “many species of fish at risk”, corals, birds and several species of cetaceans, some of which are threatened.
In its analysis, the AEIC also recalled the risks associated with an oil spill for marine wildlife and commercial fisheries. The gigantic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010 was caused by exploratory drilling by BP. However, the company will not have to have, in Canada, the “capping” system that is necessary to stop an “eruption”, that is to say a major spill. Such equipment must be imported when needed. It is therefore expected to take 30 days to install it at the head of a well that experiences a major leak.
Reviews
The Trudeau government had authorized the project of around twenty boreholes in 2020, but BP is planning only one for the moment. The Office gave the necessary authorization to start this drilling on May 5th.
Is oil drilling in a marine refuge consistent with the objectives of protecting biodiversity and combating the climate crisis? The office of Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault did not answer the question directly.
However, it is argued that the project was approved “following a robust and science-based environmental assessment”, but also that it is subject to “102 legally binding conditions”. These conditions include “measures to protect fish and fish habitat, marine mammals and sea turtles, migratory birds, species at risk, and resource use by Indigenous peoples,” it says.
Biologist specializing in marine mammals and the functioning of ecosystems, Lyne Morissette denounces this open door to the oil industry. “Drilling is very risky for ecosystems, both in terms of the risk of spills and the disturbance of the seabed and the chemical and noise pollution they represent. And in addition, we do it in a marine refuge, which is an area created to protect the most unique and sensitive marine species and habitats in the country. There is nothing in this decision that is consistent. »
“It’s a setback,” said Sierra Club Canada spokesperson Gretchen Fitzgerald. She recalls that Canada has made a commitment to protect 25% of its marine environments by 2025, then 30% by 2030. In this context, “drilling in a marine refuge intended to protect corals and sponges in particular whose growth is very slow constitutes an unacceptable threat to biodiversity”.
Energy NL, which represents companies in the oil sector, believes on the contrary that this project is timely. If the potential proves attractive for commercial exploitation, the project could generate billions of dollars in benefits for the province and the country, according to its president and CEO, Charlene Johnson.
Well aware of oil development in the marine environment in eastern Canada, Sylvain Archambault nevertheless reminds us that the well being drilled is only a first step. “For exploitation, several wells would have to be drilled to properly define the deposit. It would take quite a long time to come up with commercial production, ”said the man who is also a biologist at the Society for Nature and Parks.
Mr. Archambault also believes that Newfoundland and Labrador is mainly trying to promote the emergence of new projects, in a context where the province hopes to double oil production after 2030. A call for tenders for several new permits to exploration in the marine environment that would cover more than 120,000 km2 has just been launched, with the approval of the Trudeau government. No less than 14 permits, totaling 22,757 km2partially or totally encroach on the marine refuge where BP has just launched its drilling.