Page 226 - Environmental Control in Petroleum Engineering

212 Environmental Control in Petroleum Engineering

water jet cutting . These methods, however, are significantly more
hazardous to the work crews involved (McNally, R., 1987; Al-Hassani,
1988; Pittrnan et al., 1961; Murrell and Faul, 1989).
Once the platform has been removed, it can be disposed of by
transporting it to land, cutting it into pieces, and burying it. This
process, however, is expensive. In some areas, abandoned platforms
can be sunk to the sea floor and used as artificial reefs to enhance
offshore fisheries. The platform provides a solid substrate for aquatic
plants to grow, which then attract fish. The "Rigs to Reefs" program
may be particularly attractive in offshore areas having few natural
reefs, such as the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. Such programs are currently
being developed in a number of states.
REFERENCES

Al-Hassani, S. T., S., "Platform Removal Demands complex Explosive
Designs," Oil and Gas J., May 16, 1988.
American Petroleum Institute, Subsurface Salt Water Injection and Disposal,
Book 3 of the API Vocational Training Series, Washington, D.C., 1978.
American Petroleum Institute, "Summary and Analysis of API Onshore
Drilling Mud and Produced Water Environmental Studies," API Bulletin
D19, Washington, D.C., Nov. 1983.
American Petroleum Institute, "Management and Disposal Alternatives for
NORM Wastes in Oil Production and Gas Plant Equipment," Washington,
D.C., May 1990.
Anderson, D.C., Smith, C., Jones, S. G., and Brown, K. W., "Fate of Con-
stituents in the Soil Environment, in Hazardous Waste Land Treatment,"
K. W. Brown, G. B. Evans, Jr., and B. D. Frentrup (editors), Wobern, MA:
Butterworth Publishers, 1983.
Andersen, E. E., Louviere, R. J., and Witt, D. E., "Guidelines for Designing
Safe, Environmentally Acceptable Downhole Injection Operations," paper
25964 presented at the Society of Petroleum Engineers/Environmental
Protection Agency's Exploration and Production Environmental Conference,
San Antonio, TX, March 7-10, 1993.
Amhus, K. M. and Slora, G., "Cuttings and Waste Mud Disposal," paper SPE/
IADC 21949 presented at the Society of Petroleum Engineers SPE/IADC
Drilling Conference, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, March 11–14, 1991.
Arnold, D. M. and Paap, H. J., "Quantitative Monitoring of Water Flow
Behind and in Wellbore Casing," J. Pet. Tech., Jan. 1979, pp. 121-130.
Arscott, R. L., "New Directions in Environmental Protection in Oil and Gas
Operations," J. Pet. Tech., April 1989, pp. 336-342.