Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Burwood, VIC 3125, Australia.
Australian Institute of Marine Science, Indian Ocean Marine Research Centre, Perth, Western Australia 6009, Australia; Oceans Institute, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia 6009, Australia.
Sci Total Environ. 2023 Jun 20;878:163015. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.163015. Epub 2023 Mar 24.
Thousands of oil and gas structures have been installed in the world's oceans over the past 70 years to meet the population's reliance on hydrocarbons. Over the last decade, there has been increased concern over how to handle decommissioning of this infrastructure when it reaches the end of its operational life. Complete or partial removal may or may not present the best option when considering potential impacts on the environment, society, technical feasibility, economy, and future asset liability. Re-purposing of offshore structures may also be a valid legal option under international maritime law where robust evidence exists to support this option. Given the complex nature of decommissioning offshore infrastructure, a global horizon scan was undertaken, eliciting input from an interdisciplinary cohort of 35 global experts to develop the top ten priority research needs to further inform decommissioning decisions and advance our understanding of their potential impacts. The highest research priorities included: (1) an assessment of impacts of contaminants and their acceptable environmental limits to reduce potential for ecological harm; (2) defining risk and acceptability thresholds in policy/governance; (3) characterising liability issues of ongoing costs and responsibility; and (4) quantification of impacts to ecosystem services. The remaining top ten priorities included: (5) quantifying ecological connectivity; (6) assessing marine life productivity; (7) determining feasibility of infrastructure re-use; (8) identification of stakeholder views and values; (9) quantification of greenhouse gas emissions; and (10) developing a transdisciplinary decommissioning decision-making process. Addressing these priorities will help inform policy development and governance frameworks to provide industry and stakeholders with a clearer path forward for offshore decommissioning. The principles and framework developed in this paper are equally applicable for informing responsible decommissioning of offshore renewable energy infrastructure, in particular wind turbines, a field that is accelerating rapidly.
在过去的 70 年中，为了满足人们对碳氢化合物的依赖，全球已经安装了数千个石油和天然气结构。在过去的十年中，人们越来越关注如何处理这些基础设施在达到使用寿命终点时的退役问题。在考虑对环境、社会、技术可行性、经济和未来资产负债的潜在影响时，完全或部分拆除可能不是最佳选择。根据国际海事法，对海上结构物进行再利用也可能是一种有效的合法选择，因为有强有力的证据支持这种选择。考虑到退役海上基础设施的复杂性，进行了全球范围的扫描，从 35 名全球跨学科专家中征集意见，确定了十大优先研究需求，以进一步为退役决策提供信息，并深入了解其潜在影响。优先级最高的研究需求包括：（1）评估污染物的影响及其可接受的环境限值，以减少对生态危害的潜在风险；（2）在政策/治理中定义风险和可接受性阈值；（3）描述持续成本和责任的责任问题；（4）量化对生态系统服务的影响。其余十大优先事项包括：（5）量化生态连通性；（6）评估海洋生物生产力；（7）确定基础设施再利用的可行性；（8）确定利益相关者的观点和价值观；（9）量化温室气体排放；（10）开发跨学科的退役决策过程。解决这些优先事项将有助于为政策制定和治理框架提供信息，为行业和利益相关者提供更明确的海上退役路线。本文提出的原则和框架同样适用于为海上可再生能源基础设施（尤其是风力涡轮机）的负责任退役提供信息，该领域正在迅速发展。
