Dan Sharpe: Under-Publicised Oil Spills

Dan Sharpe's latest column for the GfGD blog looks at the problems that come from poorly reported oil spills in the developing world, and how geoscientists can address this.

In September 2008, the lives of 69,000 people living in and around Bodo, Nigeria, began to change permanently. It was rumoured that oil was first spotted in the marshes around the region in August, but Shell contested that the leak officially occurred in September that year. I mentioned this oil spill in passing as part of my blog “Oil in Society- Exploring for Sustainability” and felt this story deserved its own report.

“We could smell the oil long before we saw it – the stench of garage forecourts and rotting vegetation hanging thickly in the air” explained John Vidal - environmental editor for The Observer - in his article on this subject. The leak occurred on a section of the 50 year-old trans-Niger pipeline that transports up to 120,000 barrels of oil every day. At the height of the crisis Shell admitted that as much as 2,000 barrels per day was leaking directly into the water system. Of course nobody questioned this at the time, after-all no news crews or NGOs were there investigating this incident. A later assessment by the independent oil spill consultancy company Accufacts suggested that as much as 311,000 barrels may have been leaked into the creaks near Bodo.

The spill continued right through to mid-November that year when the leak was fixed, however just a month later another leak was discovered along the pipeline this time above an area of marsh. The second leak did not start to be fixed or even evaluated until late February the next year, but this is just a part of the issue I am aiming to convey here.

Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico
(Source: NASA/GSFC)

I am guessing all who read this will be fully aware of the BP disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, but how many have heard of the Bodo spill? Hidden away in Africa, news teams fleetingly visited the site of the crisis but this was not front page news; at least not for long. And how many know there has been another spill more recently? I certainly did not.

This latest incident has leaked as much as 2 million gallons of oil into the ocean just off the coast of Nigeria in an incident that has capped over 50 years of spoilage from the hydrocarbons industry. So why is it that nobody hears of the oil spills here? 13 out of the top 17 oil fields are in the Middle East and yet no news is told of the environmental consequences of the hydrocarbons industry here. Six of the top ten oil spills have occurred in the Middle East, however it is those in the North Sea and east coast of the States that we hear about.

This lack of news coverage is a problem, and geoscientists must determine what they can do to publicise and address these problems. The first stage should involve independent consultancy companies assessing these spills and monitoring companies working in more remote locations. This should go hand-in-hand with geoscientists encouraging science journalists to publicise and report their findings, in partnership with the more formal reports released by oil companies. These actions will help to raise public awareness and put pressure on the oil companies and local governments to tighten up on the frequency, size and recovery of leaks. Further work may involve geological engineering to produce new equipment, or the use of further independent consultancies to give guidance on how to better manage the equipment already being used. 

Who will pay for all this? Well it is no secret that the oil industry is lucrative business, and in times of increasing ‘green’ awareness the public opinion of large oil producing firms is becoming more and more important. It is surely the responsibility of the oil companies to curb the size and number of leaks that occur throughout the developing world, and geoscientists play a fundamental role in all stages of doing this. Together these efforts can improve the efficiency of the oil industry, and improve the quality of life of people living in and around producing oil fields.

Further Reading:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/jan/09/nigeria-oil-disaster-silence

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/apr/23/shell-nigeria-oil-spill-bigger

GfGD Blog Competition (Runner-Up): Natural Disasters - The importance of education in long term recovery

Our second, and final, runner-up in the GfGD Blog Competition was Daniel Sharpe, a geology student at the University of Leeds. Dan writes here about the importance of education in long-term recovery from natural hazards. You can read more of Dan's work here:

The bridge between short and long term recovery is rarely crossed in developing nations. Even in economically prosperous countries it is difficult, with aftershocks of Hurricane Katrina still rumbling through the U.S. and the more recent tsunami that ruptured the coast of Japan still having significant impacts on communities. Surely more can always be done?

Through personal experience I have seen how recovery can be slow and emotionally strenuous. In 2007 I visited the south-west coast of Sri Lanka, a region devastated by the tsunami of 2004. Two and a half years on, the entire coast was still ruined. Broken houses sat derelict, an unceremonious reminder of the lives lost. Rusting train tracks, flowers lying roadside, and crumbled memories encapsulated within the polished memorials ran parallel to the re-surfaced highway.

After the publicity subsided so did the financial aid and little could be done to continue to assist those who needed support. To protect developing communities for generations a natural response needs to be instilled in people's minds. Educating people on how to deal with hazards should be at the forefront of aid efforts. As I write this news has sparked about a magnitude 8.7 earthquake that has struck near Sumatra, very similar to that of 2004. The news now is not about the loss of life but the reaction of the local people. Granted, fortunately no tsunami proliferated from this earthquake but the immediate reaction of people was to flee to high ground. Evacuation schemes were efficient and people climbed hills and onto roofs in the knowledge that they would be safer. It can be assumed that should a tsunami have formed many lives would have been saved as a result of past experience and teaching, and this knowledge now needs passing down to younger generations; a continuation of experience and learning.

A classic case study is that of Japan. A nation that regularly suffers earthquakes, they have developed and become more educated in natural hazards and the loss of life has significantly reduced. Before 1950 the average number of deaths per earthquake was 13,000 compared to just 1,200 after, despite the average magnitude of the events being almost identical. The high level of construction quality in Japan is greatly responsible and sets an example to everyone, but with an increasing population this decrease in fatalities can also be attributed to the education of citizens. Regular earthquake drills act like fire drills in the UK, and it is now rooted in their minds how to respond should shaking ensue. 

These are two examples of how developing and now developed regions have reacted to the need for education, reducing fatalities both short and long term. China has also recognised the need for educating its citizens. In a country where deaths from natural disasters have actually increased since the millennium, the government is set to improve monitoring systems, raise public awareness and train 2.75 million people for a new disaster rescue and relief scheme. This is the attitude needed in order to reduce the loss of life in developing nations. Educating people on how to prepare, respond and relieve themselves and others from natural disasters is crucial. Coupled with a continued support from governments and NGOs the loss of life from natural disasters can be dramatically reduced; as we have seen across the Indian Ocean and Japan.

Dan Sharpe: Recent News - Three Gorges Dam

Dan Sharpe, regular GfGD Columnist, writes...

Three Gorges Dam

A subject of many an A-level geography essay, the construction of the Three Gorges Dam was completed in 2006 and the 181m high dam is thought to have cost nearly £25 billion to build. It is the second largest producing dam with regards to electricity output (behind the Itaipu Dam on the border between Brazil and Paraguay) but this has come at a serious cost, and not just financially. About 1.4 million people have already been removed from their homes as the surrounding valley was flooded, and the Chinese Ministry of Land Resources have just announced that a further 100,000 people are to be evacuated due to safety issues.

The dam caused an area of over 600 square kilometers to flood and finally filled up to this maximum in 2010. Since then the number of geological disasters has increased dramatically. Landslips and rockfalls have led to the identification of 5,386 hazardous sites with banks already collapsing in hundreds of places. The unstable nature of the banks is caused by the huge seasonal variation in water level and it is this variation that is causing thousands more to be moved from their homes.

Submerged Cities:
Photos from1987 (bottom) and 2006 (top)
(USGOV) 

The controversial dam was the dream of revolutionary leader Mao Zedong and has submerged 13 cities, 140 towns and over 1,300 villages - staggering figures that have frequently been frowned upon by many nations (and geography students of course). More recently, a report published by the environmental group Probe International suggested that the entire upper Yangtze (where 20 dams are located, including the Three Gorges) is at risk from a catastrophic collapse of these man-made structures. The idea focused around the seismic activity in the area and the theory that a failure of one dam could cause a cascade of water collapsing further dams, which in a heavily populated area is clearly a significant problem.

The Three Gorges Dam is perhaps the last example of China’s historical dictatorship, a construction that typifies the ‘greater good’ mentality with little care for the collateral damage to local people. Now, in a westernising government, this fiercely growing nation has admitted problems regarding this structure. They have conceded that they have not done enough to ensure a similar quality of life for those forced to move, and many families are beginning to move back to the banks of the reservoir increasing the fatality risk from natural disasters. Further to this, there is suggestion that the reservoir increases the risk of earthquakes in the area, and has completely changed the ecology of the river even driving the Yangtze River Dolphin to extinction.

The long term goal was to provide a sustainable source of energy, which has certainly been fulfilled, as well as controlling damaging floods that used to regularly hit the area. In 2010 for example, the South China Floods caused the reservoir to rise by 3m in less than 24 hours. Due to the control of the dam, the outflow of water was reduced from 70,000m³/s in to the reservoir to just 40,000m³/s out, effectively reducing the impacts of serious flooding on the middle and lower river.

The Three Gorges Dam is a difficult issue. On one hand it is fantastically resourceful and very good at controlling floods; however it has ruined hundreds of thousands of lives. People have been forced to move into lower standard housing in poor areas with no prospects of work, and the government has done little to support them. This project was an example of what we can achieve with hydro-electric power, but due to the political situation in China at the time, it cannot be considered fully sustainable as so many citizens were displaced. As China are beginning to accept the problems with the dam, hopefully quality of life will increase for those who once suffered and the safety of the area improved. Still, with increasing evidence for the possibility of a catastrophic failure due to seismic activity, it may not be the last negative we hear about the geography students’ favourite case study.

GfGD Blog Writing Team

As many of you will have noticed, we have been gradually adding to the regular GfGD writing team over the past few months, and are taking this opportunity to introduce them to you. As well as a number of excellent guest blogs over the past year - we currently have a team of three regular writers :  

Joel Gill is the Director of GfGD and established the blog in 2011 as part of his work to raise the profile of international development within the geoscience community. A trained engineering geologist with experience of working on water projects in East Africa, he is currently a PhD student at King's College London - undertaking researching into natural hazards and disaster risk reduction.  

Dan Sharpe is a geology student at the University of Leeds, and has been contributing to the blog since February 2012. Dan is a regular columnist - writing articles on a broad range of topics from geohazards to mining. He regular brings interesting and relevant stories in the news to the attention of our readers in an engaging and helpful way. Dan is also a GfGD ambassador, establishing a GfGD group at the University of Leeds.

Alex Stubbings is a recent graduate of the Universities of Birmingham and East Anglia. Having specialised in climate science, he spent time working in Bangladesh before returning to the UK. Alex is our regular climate change correspondent - writing posts primarily on this important area of research, policy and practice, but also writing some posts on other topics of interest. Since March 2012, Alex has been writing a mini series of posts introducing the theme of climate science and the impact a changing climate will have on the developing world.  

We are still keen to find other regular contributors - so if you're keen to develop your science communication skills, share your thoughts on geoscience and development, and support this important tool of GfGD get in touch. There are options to write as a columnist (on varied topics of your choice - with editorial input - either every fortnight or every month) or as a specialist correspondent (writing on topics primarily related to one main theme, such as water, geohazards, agriculture, mining etc). Posts are normally around one side of A4.

We also very much welcome guest blogs from students, recent graduates and professionals. If you have a topic you'd like to write about, then please do get in touch to discuss it with GfGD Blog Editor, Joel Gill. 

Dan Sharpe: Rare Earth Elements in China - An Under-Publicised Resource

Source: USDA

Dan Sharpe, our regular columnist and GfGD University Ambassador in Leeds, writes about the importance of Rare Earth Metals and challenges surrounding them. You can read Dan's full archive of posts here.

The rare earth element (REE) is a name given to a set of seventeen elements in the centre of the periodic table. Although REEs are relatively abundant in the rocks on Earth their geochemical properties means that they are rarely concentrated to such an extent that they are economical to produce. In recent studies it has been exposed that China could hold as much as fifty percent of the world’s REE reserves, ensuring they dominate the world market in this sector.

Rare-earths are used in just about every electronic device you own. They are found in computer memory, DVDs, rechargeable batteries and mobile phones amongst other things, and are often overlooked with regards to their importance in our technology rich lifestyle. With the news emerging that China is so rich in these metals, can it not be suggested that other developing nations could hold under-explored areas that are rich in REEs such as Scandium, Cerium and Neodymium. The problem however, is that countries such as China are developing rapidly and therefore need sources of income and natural resources themselves, and have strictly regulated the export of REEs. This recently culminated in a complaint filed by the United States, Japan and the European Union against China (who currently control ninety-five percent of the global production of REEs) to the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

The complaint outlines that as well as modern technologies, REEs are crucial to generating new, greener energy sources. The U.S. Department of Energy says that the release of new clean energy sources could be dramatically slowed by the supply challenges facing the REE industry. Photovoltaic films, regenerative braking in hybrid cars, larger scale wind turbines and highly efficient fluorescent lighting all require a constant and increasing supply of these materials and a new trade action aims to loosen China’s regulations with regards to rare-earth metal exports which other nations claim has kept the unit cost of these materials relatively high outside the country itself.

So this situation looks like it is under control, and a dramatically larger amount of rare-earths will soon become available if this trade action is effective. Is it enough though? Studies are showing that we may soon be experiencing a shortage of this valuable resource due to supply and demand issues. Admittedly this is largely down to China’s restrictions on export, but this is not the only problem facing the industry. In 2011, an Australian mining company was suggested to be finishing a US$230 million plant refining slightly radioactive Lanthanide in Malaysia however the authorities confirmed in October 2011 that no license was given to finish the development. It was claimed that the plant, based in Kuantan, would meet the demand for one third of REE production, excluding China.



NASA: Acid Mine Drainage (Rio Tinto River, Spain)



REE production can have serious environmental effects if not properly managed, and in the end this fear was what proved to be the downfall of the Kuantan plant. The tailings produced are often slightly radioactive and toxic acids are required during the refinement process. Even the major mine in China, reported to supply much of the world’s rare-earths, is thought to have cause significant damage to the environment with fears that the toxic waste may even have been released into the waters of the area.

Rare-earth metal production can be a controversial, yet drastically important industry. With China holding the vast majority of resources close to their chest, it is important to branch out and explore new areas to meet an exponentially growing demand. This industry is severely challenged by environmental concern, and quite rightly, but with proper management the world needs to focus on the exploration of these elements in order to look towards a more efficient, sustainable planet. You can forget oil exploration for now, the new controversial extraction industry has arrived, and it will certainly be sticking around for a while to come.

Further Reading

POST Note: Strategically Important Metals

Geoscientist Article - REE Metals

Geological Society Briefing - REE Metals  

Dan Sharpe: Recent News - The Indigenous People of the Ecuadorian Amazon Stand up to the Government’s New Mining Deal

GfGD's latest University Ambassador (at the University of Leeds), is Dan Sharpe, our regular GfGD columnist. Over the past couple of weeks he has written about natural hazards and oil, today he looks at a recent story from Ecuador.

"As you may have seen, plastered over most major environment sections of websites such as the BBC is the news that the indigenous people of Ecuador’s Amazon Rainforest have stood up and protested against mining plans in their area. Several hundred protestors set off on a march in protest of the newly accepted plans to develop a large open pit copper mine proposed by Ecuacorriente, a large mining company based in China.

It will not only displace numerous local communities but could well contaminate their water supply, claim Ecuador's main indigenous organisation; Conaie. In contrast, President Rafael Correa has accused the group of trying to destabilise the country, explaining that the agreement was made with Ecuacorriente in the aim of increased development as a result of new investment. Indeed there has been much disagreement within this nation over the deal, with indigenous residents taking to their feet and marching a 700km route to the capital, Quito. Aiming to pick up people along the way, they will undoubtedly gain support but may also find opposition protestors in their way. One thing for sure is they will certainly find that when they reach Quito, where thousands of the President’s supporters have gathered in a rival protest.

Don’t get me wrong, there are clearly issues surrounding this deal but it is obvious that there are huge positives too. The Ecuadorian Government stated that Ecuacorriente are set to invest US$1.4 billion into their new mine in the first five years of the twenty-five year contract, receiving approximately US$4.5 billion over the whole deal. The company have also promised to set aside US$100 million for the development of neighbouring communities. “We cannot be beggars sitting on a sack of gold” said the president recently, exclaiming that this is a new era for the small South American nation. Try telling that to the communities who have just lost their homes, businesses and entire way of life however.



President Correa
(courtesy of Roosewelt Pinheiro/Abr)



It is clearly a difficult situation and one that has no ideal outcome. I shall leave you to your own opinion on the agreement, but I cannot help but consider it on two different scales. Locally there are going to be tales of hurt and poverty and breaches of human rights, invariably there always is, but you have to sympathise with President Correa. This is a huge amount of income for Ecuador and a big deal to make for a country where the state owns a 52 percent share of mining income (compared to Chile at 36 percent and Peru at 33 percent). Correa is clearly after ‘The Greater Good’, but then when was the last time you heard that phrase?"

Dan Sharpe: Oil in Society - Exploring for Sustainability

Dan Sharpe, a second year geology student at the University of Leeds, is our new columnist. A couple of weeks ago he wrote about the contrast between earthquakes in Haiti and New Zealand, and this week he shares some thoughts on one of the things most associated with geoscience - oil. 

In an increasingly populated world the quest for natural resources is reaching unprecedented levels. New technologies and increasing prices have lead to a more efficient extraction of oil and the United States alone consumed nearly 20 million barrels of oil every day in 2009.

As a result of this frenzied exploration, companies have to be more acutely aware of the damage that may occur to the human population of an exploration area. With oil being actively extracted from developing countries such as China, Venezuela and the majority of the middle-east it is obligatory that the major companies ‘give back’ to the areas they are working in. Many only view the bad side of the extractive industries, but with stricter regulations and an increase in moral concern for oil producing countries, much better news is now coming out of this industry.

By no means am I saying there are no downsides however. Headlines were battered with stories from the Gulf of Mexico when BP’s offshore rig leaked in 2010 on an immense scale with up to 5 million barrels estimated to have escaped the pipe. Historical incidents include the 1989 disaster involving the tanker Exxon Valdez or the 2002 Prestige catastrophe involving a Greek ship, but in developing countries spills have been known to slip under the news coverage slightly more smoothly. In 2009, Amnesty International released a statement requesting that the CEO of Shell sort out spills in the Niger Delta claiming that the people in the area are forced to drink contaminated water, catch fish that smell of crude oil and breathe air rich in oil and gas fumes. The full press release can be found here.

It is clear that extraction companies such as Shell, British Petroleum and ExxonMobil have an obligation in modern society to ensure they leave areas the same as they were when they arrived, if not better. Today, most major oil companies have projects in place to do exactly this, and the good that these schemes do is very rarely publicised. Shell have their foundation for example, which is focussed on poverty and environmental issues. Hess has their PRODEGE scheme which aims to develop the education schemes in areas of Equatorial Guinea, Africa. This $40 million program aims to improve schools in the country and, working with the local government, Hess has managed to establish 40 model schools of which 39 are now fully operating. As a side project, the partnership has built latrines and drilled water wells to ensure that students now have safe, drinkable water and proper sanitation.

As we all progress into a ‘greener’ world it is important for oil companies to follow. Contrary to this Shell cut all funding for wind, solar and hydro-electric developments in 2009, explaining that the money would be invested into biofuels instead, an energy source that drives up food prices and increases deforestation say environmental groups.

In a statement released in 2010 however, Chevron announced that over $2 billion would be invested in developing renewable technologies over the next three years, showing that some major companies do still value renewable solutions as a true alternative to fossil fuels. Whether this is true is yet to be seen, but the use of solar panels in remote locations, hydro-electric plants for local sustainability and wind farms both off and onshore could well be viable alternatives for those unable to afford fossil fuel powered luxuries such as cars. With profits of over $6 billion per year these major companies are not short on cash and perhaps, with a little investment, the developing renewable solutions could make be viable alternatives for small, remote, and often underdeveloped communities.

These are clear examples of how an oil company can, and should treat local communities, especially in developing nations. The extractive industries are littered with tortured tales of an old-fashioned past and as we move into another decade of poverty, drought and a lack of literacy or numeracy, it is now the chance for companies to prove that the industry has escaped the wasteful techniques of years ago.

Dan Sharpe: Contrasting Earthquakes in Christchurch and Haiti

Dan Sharpe, aged 19, is a second year geology student at the University of Leeds. With an avid interest in travelling, he has recently spent three and a half months in the wilderness of Northwest Canada and has also climbed the highest active volcano in the world. Currently fundraising for his participation in the Milan City Marathon in April, Dan spends most of his time out of lectures running or in the pool, or the pub of course.

Dan has a keen interest in development and will be joining the GfGD Blog writing team as a columnist - covering topics of interest to him - and hopefully many of you, enjoy!

Source: Flickr

2011 was a year of unparalleled numbers of disasters and the first six months saw over $265 billion in losses (study by Munich Re; a company that specialises in disaster insurance). On the 10th January floodwaters rushed through Queensland Australia, waters that killed 17 people and caused millions of dollars of damage; an event that carried on affecting lives through to February. This month also saw a devastating earthquake hit Christchurch New Zealand, and this 6.3 magnitude hazard was the largest of six earthquakes to strike the city on the 22nd February. 182 people lost their lives as a result of this event which, for such a large and repetitive series of earthquakes, is considerably lower than it may have been. In comparison to another hazard event in 2010, this low death toll is nothing short of remarkable. The earthquake that shook the capital of Haiti in January 2010 recorded 7.0 on the Richter Scale, but the death toll came in at over 300,000. Both earthquakes occurred at a relatively shallow depth increasing their severity, and both had an epicentre less than 25km from the cities so why was one so much more deadly?

Marco Dormino/UNDP

The slums surrounding Port-au-Prince, Haiti, are some of the worst in the world. Corrugated iron and wooden shacks are built on foundations of unconsolidated mud and rock. Liquefaction of these poor foundations means these temporary living spaces easily collapse, entombing the residents inside. All of the main buildings had inadequate building quality and no earthquake protection technologies, so many collapsed partially if not entirely including the three medical centres. In contrast, the buildings of Christchurch are soundly constructed and much more resistant to earthquakes. The hospital, although partially damaged, remained open throughout the event to treat the injured and although nearly a quarter of the residential buildings in the city centre are expected to be demolished, few collapsed in the event itself ensuring the survival of most residents.



In developing regions, response mechanisms need great improvement. NGOs and foreign governments can only do so much to repair the damage done by a natural disaster, so greater internal support and infrastructure is needed to respond rapidly to a hazardous event. For three days after the Haiti earthquake the only medical facility was the Argentine Military Field Hospital and survivors were left to search for victims buried in the rubble, alive or dead.



Geoscience Education (c) GfGD



The role of the geologist is to identify and to teach. With a better understanding of earthquakes in developing regions comes the opportunity to reduce risk through reducing vulnerability. Working with regional and governmental geologists to map areas of poor foundations and poorly consolidated ground can also inform risk reduction. The earthquake on the 10th January 2010 was different because of the geology itself. The shallow depth of the earthquake meant more energy reached Port-au-Prince and the geology and relief of the surrounding area ‘funnelled’ the waves down towards the city. With stakeholders having a better understanding of the regional geology, more preparation could have saved countless lives two years ago. A lack of geological analysis of this developing nation, however, left it blind to the problems it then faced. Installing a basic knowledge of geosciences in schools and government departments could help reduce risk before hazards even happen, surely a crucial way of building resilience and reducing vulnerability, thus bringing Haiti’s death toll closer to that experienced in Christchurch.