Rigs-to-Reefs
[2] In the United States, where the practice started and is most common, Rigs-to-Reefs is a nationwide program developed by the former Minerals Management Service (MMS),[3] now Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), of the U.S. Department of the Interior.
Inevitably, marine organisms attach themselves to the underwater portions of oil production platforms, transforming them into artificial reefs.
[13] In the United States, the Minerals Management Service (MMS) requires the operator to remove the rig within a year of abandonment (stopped production[13]) and lease end.
Officially, decommissioning an oil rig is the act of removal according to regulatory requirements and includes flushing, plugging and cementing wells to make them safe.
Mounds can contain significant levels of toxic metals including, arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper, nickel, PCBs, lead, zinc, and poly-nuclear hydrocarbons.
[14] The method of decommissioning depends on water depth and structure type[15] and is a three-step process that includes planning, permitting, and implementation.
Current requirements place the explosives a minimum of 5 metres (16 ft) below the seafloor which eliminates the threat to all but the closest sea turtles.
[23] In 1984 Congress passed the National Fishing Enhancement Act (NFEA) which provided the basis for artificial reef programs.
This plan cleared the way for government-endorsed artificial reef projects and subsequently the Minerals Management Services' Rigs-to-Reef program.
[25] The federal government responded by placing a moratorium on Rigs-to-Reefs, and requiring unused platforms to be speedily decommissioned by removal.
[26] In June 2013, the BSEE lifted its moratorium on Rigs-to-Reefs, subject to Coast Guard determination that the structure would not pose a threat to navigation, and acceptance of ownership and liability by the state government.
[7] In 1979, Exxon relocated their experimental subsea production system from offshore Louisiana to a permitted artificial reef site off Apalachicola, Florida.
The California legislature passed a bill allowing conditional partial removal of oil platforms in 2010, and the measure was signed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Offshore operator Shell Brunei Petroleum has towed numerous old platforms and jackets to two designated artificial reef areas located away from shipping lanes.
Studies have concluded that oil platforms in the North Sea attract fish, and that a rigs-to-reefs policy there would benefit fishers.
[40] Even with the RTR successes in the Gulf of Mexico and Philippines,[41] differences in terrain, government entities, and concerned citizens generated conflict.
[42] A 2000 MMS report lists research that shows fish densities 20 to 50 times higher around oil and gas platforms than in nearby open water.
[46] These groups tend to support Rigs-to-Reefs, and fear the loss of coral and fish habitat if the oil platforms are removed.
Dr. Bob Shipp, chairman of the University of South Alabama Department of Marine Sciences, and director of the Alabama Center for Estuarine Studies, would like to see 100 percent participation in Rigs-to-Reefs, and said of removing unused oil rigs from the Gulf: “As a fisheries scientist, I think it’s a very big mistake,” He elaborated: Those commercial fisherman who trawl generally oppose Rigs-to-Reefs because their nets may snag a rig, creating a hazardous situation.
This is particularly the case in offshore California with bottom trawling commercial fishers, who can foul their nets on the shell mounds that build up on the sea floor near the rig.
[17] Under the new policy issued June 2013, oil platforms in the Rigs-to-Reefs program must be deeded, and liability accepted by, the state government.
Environmental groups have long opposed oil companies and frame their critique around distrust of the industry, particularly with regard to Rigs-to-Reefs in offshore California.
[23] "No other industry is allowed to leave a toxic mess for the state to manage and maintain at taxpayer expense" said Linda Krop, Chief council for the Santa Barbara-based Environmental Defense Center.
[49] The Environmental Defense Fund supports Rigs-to-Reefs in the Gulf of Mexico, as a way to preserve the existing reef habitat of the oil platforms.
