Impact of Oil/Gas Production on the Environment - Essay Example

However, there is a way through which this project can go through without much damage being done to the environment and the inhabitants of the environment around the area that will be affected. This report aims at providing an evaluation of the situation and presenting a proposal for a successful implementation of this project. Oil drilling can have some negative effects on the benthic fauna. Drill cuttings have the ability to change the state of the benthic fauna over a large area of the seabed. It usually takes a long period of time before for the breakdown to take place. Apart from when it is undertaken with a lot of care, seismic surveying can result in injuries to living things that are present in the immediate environment. These activities also have the ability of frightening fish and other marine animals away. For seismic surveying to be safe the surveyors must make sure that there are no sensitive organisms within the environment before they commence.

During the process of drilling oil wells, it has also been noticed that there is always the production of noise that might not be healthy for the environment. The noise mostly comes from the equipment used such as drill rigs. Blasting can also lead to the production of noise. There are also emissions that usually result from the drilling process that might be harmful to the environment and its inhabitants. During the drilling process, there is always the emission of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide in the air. There is also the emission of dust and other particles in the air. These emissions make the environment less accommodating to the inhabitants and can even lead to some health complications.
During the drilling process, there are a number of ecological damages that might take place. When the good pads are being developed the vegetation cover and the topsoil are always removed. This will lead to increased soil erosion because of the reduced vegetation cover. This leaves the earth vulnerable to noxious weeds which only contribute to further damage to the soil. When this happens the ecological balance is interfered with and the inhabitants of the areas where the drilling takes place are the ones who are affected most.

As for the production of oil that takes place closer to the coastal regions, one of the main concerns is the possible leakage which might end up in the water masses putting in danger animals living in the water masses and those that depend on the water masses for their livelihood. Human beings will also be affected because they also depend on such water masses. The seepage into the soil might also affect vegetation and organisms living in the soil.

One of the laws that the organization should take into consideration is the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities. This principle asserts that even though all the member countries of the UN have the responsibility of improving the society, they all have different levels of capability. These differences should be taken into consideration when coming up with international goals and benchmarks. A good example of an application of this principle is the Kyoto protocol, which requires developed countries to reduce their emissions while expecting developing countries to report their emissions. With reference to the human development index, Australia can be categorized as a developed country.
According to the precautionary principle, any activity that has potential harm to human health or the environment should be accompanied by precautionary measures even if the potential harms have not yet been scientifically approved. The process of taking precautionary measures is expected to be an open one.

Another law that should be taken into consideration is the principle of sustainable development. This law states that development at the present should not be in a manner that development in the future is undermined. In this principle, the earth is seen as a system connecting space, and the pollution activity that takes place in America has the potential of having an effect on Asia in a matter of time. The principle also views the earth as a system that connects time. This implies that activities that take place at the moment will affect generations to come, just like some of the activities that were undertaken many decades ago affect the world at the moment.