Prudhoe Bay Oil Spill Cleanup

Published Mar 8, 2006 12:01 AM by The Maritime Executive

A return to full production at the biggest U.S. oil field will take a back seat to Alaska's cleanup and emergency response efforts, state environmental officials said.

A large crude oil spill forced the shutdown of about 100,000 barrels of daily production at the Prudhoe Bay field last Thursday, when oil leaked out of a transit pipeline. Emergency response work takes priority over the full resumption of Prudhoe Bay's daily production, said state officials.

Approximately 470,000 barrels were recorded by the field's operator in February, said BP, who is partnered with Exxon Mobil Corp. and ConocoPhillips.

Winter conditions have lessened the environmental impacts from the oil spill, which has spread over nearly two acres of snow-covered tundra and hard-frozen lake, according to the department. The frigid winter condition makes it easier to clean up the spilled oil than would have been the case during a time of thaw, said a state official.

The spilled oil most likely penetrated through the snow layer and reached the tundra surface, since the oil pumped out of the wells is hot and typically melts much of the snow. The leak in the transit line, which transports oil out of the Prudhoe Bay field to the trans-Alaska pipeline, forced the shutdown of one of the field's six gathering centers.

The affected gathering center separates the oil, natural gas, and water pumped out of the wells and processes 100,000 barrels a day from about 230 wells on 12 drill pads, according to BP.
Environmental regulators and BP officials still did not know the exact size of the spill or its environmental impact.

Cleanup workers who have been at the site have recovered 56,070 gallons of an oil-water mixture, according to a Department of Environmental Conservation report issued yesterday.

Environmentalists pointed to the spill as evidence that oil development in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge would threaten the environment there.

"No matter how hard the oil industry tries with new technology and good intentions, mistakes happen," said Eleanor Huffines, director of The Wilderness Society's Alaska office.