Dept. Biological and Environmental Sciences, Qatar University, PO Box 2713, Doha, Qatar.
Dept. Biological and Environmental Sciences, Qatar University, PO Box 2713, Doha, Qatar.
Mar Pollut Bull. 2021 Dec;173(Pt A):112935. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112935. Epub 2021 Sep 22.
Oil and gas platforms act as artificial habitats for a myriad of marine organisms. In this study, we used opportunistic remotely operated vehicle (ROV) data to describe fouling assemblages through the characterization of functional groups in the Al Shaheen oil field, situated in Qatari waters. The surveys showed a strong vertical stratification, with the number of functional groups increasing from the surface to the bottom. In addition, the majority of functional groups had their highest frequency of occurrence in the 35-60 m interval. In turn, multivariate analyses showed a slight structure among platforms with different ages. The lowest number of functional groups occurred in the early ages (2-3 years old), and some groups either increased or decreased their frequency and abundance along the years. A step further is now required to determine whether these platform foundations should be converted to reefs after their decommissioning (i.e., Rigs to Reefs approach).
石油和天然气平台是众多海洋生物的人工栖息地。在这项研究中，我们利用机会性遥控潜水器（ROV）数据通过对位于卡塔尔水域的 Al Shaheen 油田功能组的特征来描述污损生物组合。调查显示出强烈的垂直分层，功能组的数量从表面增加到底部。此外，大多数功能组在 35-60 m 区间出现的频率最高。反过来，多元分析显示出不同年龄平台之间的细微结构。在早期（2-3 岁）出现的功能组数量最少，一些组的频率和丰度随着时间的推移而增加或减少。现在需要进一步确定这些平台基础在退役后是否应该转化为珊瑚礁（即，从钻井平台到珊瑚礁的方法）。
