Providing Integrated Solutions
South of the Border

In recent years through several diverse project assignments, Battelle has provided integrated solutions to PEMEX, the national petroleum company of Mexico. In 1998, Battelle formed a strategic alliance with three Mexican institutions: the Mexican Petroleum Institute (IMP), the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), and the Autonomous Metropolitan University (UAM). In 2003, Battelle and the IMP formalized a technology alliance based on the transfer of technology from Battelle to the IMP. Through these partnerships, we have conducted (or are in the process of conducting) several environmental projects, including the following: assessment of PEMEX’s environmental legacy in the state of Tabasco; assessment of the environmental consequences of PEMEX’s offshore operations; evaluation of PEMEX’s options for wastewater treatment and management; evaluation of PEMEX’s supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system for gas pipeline operation; assessment of risk for gas pipelines in the Ciudad de Carmen region; development of an emergency management system for PEMEX refining operations; and development of a technology strategy for IMP, based on benchmarking, technology intelligence, value chain development, scenario-based planning, and technology road mapping. Through these project assignments and the alliance, PEMEX has relied upon Battelle to provide solutions to a wide array of environmental challenges.

Often, within one project, Battelle applies many areas of expertise to fully respond to clients’ needs. This was the case in determining the magnitude and extent of environmental impacts of PEMEX’s petroleum exploration and production operations and gas processing operations in the oil fields of the Región Sur. The areas of focus were air quality, corrosion, water quality (surface water and groundwater), soils (salinization, acidification, and fertility), agricultural systems, aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, and human health (public and worker).

To date, Battelle and its alliance partners have collected data on the operational parameters of PEMEX, evaluated air quality and corrosion rates by setting up a network of air and corrosion sampling stations throughout the region, and evaluated soil conditions, groundwater conditions, and surface water conditions through an extensive sampling and analysis program throughout the region. Battelle employed stable isotope analysis, chemical fingerprinting, and transport modeling to separate PEMEX-produced constituents in these media from those produced by other industries, natural processes, and agricultural practices. Human health exposure codes and ecosystem exposure and response computer codes to estimate the potential for adverse effects of chemical concentrations on human health and the ecosystem were also employed. Sophisticated biological community analyses to separate effects on the ecological system that were due to PEMEX effluents, rainforest conversion to industry and agricultural uses, and habitat fragmentation were also carried out. These methods included tracking changes in forest quality over time using satellite data.

By accessing technical expertise across the allied institutions, scientists were able to identify the specific operations contributing to those impacts, review and recommend operational changes that would prevent future impacts, and review and recommend mitigation activities to lessen existing effects of past PEMEX operations or accidents.

For additional information, please contact Mr. Rick Chidester at (206) 528-3230, chidesterr@battelle.org.