Phase Two of PEMEX Environmental Study Begins

Instituto Mexican del Petróleo (IMP) and Battelle (The "Alianza") have received a two-year, $8.65 million contract from Mexican oil giant PEMEX to carry out the second phase of an environmental assessment of its offshore oil and gas operations in the Sonda de Campeche. Battelle will conduct tasks amounting to about $4.0 million of the work. The project, a joint effort of the Battelle-IMP Alianza, will assess the nature and extent of environmental impacts that were identified as potential impacts in the earlier study. In doing so, Battelle will evaluate whether environmental impacts are due to PEMEX operations or other environmental factors. In addition, the Alianza will provide specific guidance on how PEMEX can improve environmental operations in the Sonda.

In 1998, using existing environmental data from PEMEX and other sources, the Alianza team first conducted a screening-level evaluation to determine whether past or current operations at Sonda de Campeche had likely resulted in impacts to human health or the environment. The study assessed the impacts of PEMEX operations by level and extent of effect, quality of the environmental data, and quality of the data about human or ecological effects. "We wanted to give PEMEX as accurate a view as possible within the project scope," said Dr. Charlie Brandt, Battelle project manager. Key senior staff in Battelle include Brandt, Marshall Richmond, and Jeff Ward of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, which Battelle operates for the U.S. Department of Energy, and Dr. Jerry Neff, Dr. Scott Stout, and Bill Steinhauer of Battelle's Coastal Resource and Environmental Management and Safety group.

Natural petroleum seeps were one confounding factor in the scientists' analyses. "It was difficult to tell the effect of routine discharges or spills because they were small compared to naturally occurring seeps in the area," said Brandt. Brandt noted in the next phase of the research Battelle's forensic chemists would develop source fingerprints of PEMEX oil and other discharges that could distinguish these products from the natural oil seepages in the area.

In phase two, the Alianza will install instruments to fill a multitude of data gaps and gather data and samples to confirm findings from the earlier study. Ecotoxicologists will quantify the toxicity and biological effects of discharges from the oil and gas exploration and production process. Geochemists and hydrologists will evaluate and model groundwater and soil contamination while physical oceanographers will measure currents at the discharge points using acoustic Doppler current profilers to predict the direction and concentration of discharges. Once samples are analyzed, Battelle will apply risk assessment approaches and use forensic analysis to differentiate PEMEX effects on seawater, groundwater, sediment, soil, and biota from those arising from other sources.

Related to the Sonda project is a parallel effort to transfer technology and know-how to IMP so that they may improve their environmental services and technologies. The technology transfer effort in this case will involve training in: ecological risk assessment techniques, the conduct of ecotoxicology studies, deepwater assessment and sampling approaches, and risk communication to stakeholders.

For further information, contact Dr. Charlie Brandt, (509) 376-5345, charles.brandt@pnl.gov.