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Courtesy of 
Photo courtesy of the Darwin Foundation |
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| Courtesy of
Photo courtesy of the Darwin Foundation |
Even when every effort is made to prevent oil spills, accidents will happen. What are we doing to limit the number and size of these spills and make sure that people react quickly?
We train response teams, make sure ships and other equipment are as safe as they can be and monitor weather patterns. We have also developed high technology systems to keep everyone informed, and we work hard to enforce the rules, for both the Canadian industry and international ships in Canadian waters.
The world tanker fleet has changed dramatically in recent years. Not only are today's ships equipped with high technology instruments and controls but they are much larger. In the 1950s, ships of 30,000 deadweight tons (dwt) were considered very large; today tankers of 250,000 dwt are common, and some have been built with twice that tonnage. As global demand for oil has increased, so has our ability to transport it from place to place.
Many steps have been taken to ensure safe operations:
Information about weather and ice conditions is essential for a ship's safe passage. To prevent spills in Canadian waters, each navigator has access to:
There are a few common designs for large ships, including double hulls and double bottoms. Each design has its advantages and drawbacks. Although structural improvements to ships make tanker traffic safer, recent advances like double hulls will not eliminate spillage under all circumstances. For example, many experts believe that a double hull would not have prevented the 1993 Braer spill off the Shetland Islands.
As much as 92 percent of all oil spills involving tankers happen at a terminal when oil is being loaded or discharged. Precautions at terminals include monitoring oil flows, regular inspections of hoses and connections, and routine checks of tank levels. Weather conditions are monitored closely. Dikes around storage tanks prevent oil from escaping if an accident does occur.
Marine traffic control systems are in place in many major shipping areas. The systems can be as simple as traffic lanes in heavily travelled waters or they can be very sophisticated networks. Governments are introducing control systems for marine operations similar to those we take for granted at airports. But no matter how simple or complex, traffic control greatly minimizes collisions and the risk of ships running aground.
The number of major oil spills (over 700 tonnes) recorded by the International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation Ltd. averaged 25 per year during the 1970s. During the 1980s, the average dropped to about eight per year.
More than 40,000 wells have been drilled offshore since the turn of the century. Based on industry experience worldwide, the probability of a major oil well blowout is about one per 7,000 wells drilled.
There have been more than 375 wells drilled off the east coast of Canada and in the Arctic. Most of these were exploratory wells which have been abandoned. The rate at which successful wells will be developed depends, to a great extent, on the price of oil and the overall economics of the situation.
