Environment Report 2016

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ENVIRONMENT REPORT 2016
Chemical Classification
CEFAS uses the Chemical Hazard and Risk Management (CHARM)63 model to rank offshore chemicals according
to their calculated hazard quotients (the ratio of Predicted Environmental Concentration (PEC)64 to Predicted
No Effect Concentration (PNEC)65). Inorganic and organic chemicals with functions for which the CHARM model
has no algorithms are ranked using the CEFAS OCNS hazard groups66. With these tools, operators can assess the
likely effect of discharging specific chemicals into the marine environment and employ management methods to
minimise environmental risk while maintaining operational performance.
Hazard Ranking Components
PLONOR The PLONOR category includes all those products for which PON1s were submitted that havebeen assigned PLONOR (Pose Little Or NO Risk) status by BEIS.
Low The Low Hazard category includes OCNS groups D and E, gold and silver as the lowestecotoxicity groupings. This excludes products that have official PLONOR rankings.
Medium The Medium Hazard category includes OCNS groups B and C as mediumecotoxicity groupings.
High The High Hazard category includes OCNS group A, as the highest ecotoxicity grouping.
Unattributable The remaining category includes all of those products for which sufficient descriptionis not given and therefore they cannot be categorised in this model.
The Norwegian authorities use an alternative classification system for chemical discharges on the Norwegian
Continental Shelf67. TheNorwegian categories are: green (chemicals considered to have no or limited environmental
impact); yellow (chemicals in use but not covered by the other categories); red (chemicals that are environmentally
hazardous and should be replaced); and black (chemicals prohibited for discharge except under special permits).
Green and yellow chemicals can be discharged without specific conditions while red chemicals must have a permit.
Based on these definitions, it is reasonable to equate green with PLONOR and red with SUB. Yellow and black
chemicals cannot be equated to UKCS categories.
7.2 Atmospheric Emissions
Regulatory Landscape
Atmospheric emissions from the offshore oil and gas industry are controlled by several pieces of legislation that
require operators to undertake emissions monitoring, reporting and management measures. There are over
20 atmospherics-related European legal instruments that are applicable to various different sites in the oil and
gas industry.
Atmospheric emissions must be reported to BEIS through EEMS. These data are based on calculations and direct
measurements derived from emissions monitoring carried out in accordance with each relevant scheme. BEIS then
uses the EEMS data for its reporting requirements for a number of international conventions and EU legislation.
63 See
64 PEC is an indication of the expected concentration of a material in the environment. It considers the amount initially
present in the environment, its distribution and rates of degradation and removal, either forced or natural.
65 PNEC represents the concentration below which exposure to a substance is not expected to cause adverse effects to
species in the environment.
66 This hazard ranking system does not take into account the mass of the releases and therefore is not a measure of risk to
the environment.
67 These categories are detailed in the Norske Olje & Gass 2014 Environmental Report available
at