RIASSUNTO
Abstract
Potential impacts from anthropogenic sound on marine life, including from geophysical operations, have received ever-increasing attention in recent years from regulators, environmental non-governmental organizations, fishing organizations and the public. As a result, many national government agencies and international agencies have developed a range of guidelines and regulations aimed at mitigating these potential impacts.
Regulations vary between countries and regional authorities, and in several locations there are no official guidelines in place. Regulations are frequently amended, often in reaction to public demand and overly conservative estimates of potential impacts. Operating globally, the geophysical industry faces many challenges as it seeks to understand and properly implement the disparate and changing regulatory requirements.
The geophysical industry is committed to conducting offshore activities in an environmentally responsible manner, including compliance with mitigation and monitoring guidelines and regulations. More than four decades of worldwide seismic surveying and various scientific research indicate that the risk of direct physical injury to marine mammals is extremely low. In addition, there is no scientific evidence that demonstrates biologically significant negative impacts on marine life populations. Nevertheless, the members of the International Association of Geophysical Contractors (IAGC) support measures that are proportionate to the potential risk and based on the best available science to minimize any potential impact of their operations.
IAGC proactively engages with government agencies in their development of regulations and IAGC also supplies guidance to its members where none exist, including its guidance documents Recommended Mitigation Measures for Cetaceans during Geophysical Operations (1) and Guidance for Marine Life Visual Observers (2), both published in 2011, and Guidance on the Use of Towed Passive Acoustic Monitoring during Geophysical Operations (3), published in January 2014.
This paper will review the current status of guidelines globally and serve as an update to the 2008 SPE paper on this topic (4). In addition, this paper discusses how guidelines have evolved since 2008, how they have impacted the geophysical industry, and the actions IAGC has undertaken to address the issue.