26 



Table 3. Fates and Effects Studies in the Gulf of Mexico supported and administered by the Minerals 

 (cont'd) Management Service, Gulf of Mexico Region, Environmental Studies Program (USDI, MMS 1989). 



CONTRACT 

 NO. 



STUDY TITLE 



CONTRACTORS 



FINAL REPORT 



29122 



An Evaluation of Effluent 

 Dispersion and Fate 

 Models for OCS Platforms 



MBC Applied 

 Environmental Sciences 

 and Analytic and 

 Computational Research, 

 Inc. 



MBC 1983 



30012 



30252 



A Numerical Mud 

 Discharge Plume Model 

 for Offshore Drilling 

 Operations 



Causes of Wetland Loss in 

 the Coastal Central Gulf 

 of Mexico 



U.S. Army Engineers 

 Waterways Experiment 

 Station 



Coastal Ecology Institute 

 Louisiana State Univ. 



USCOE 1985 



CEI 1988 



Table 4. Potential long-term environmental effects of offshore oil and gas development activities (adapted from 

 Boesch et al. 1987). 



Chronic biological effects resulting from the persistence of medium and high molecular weight aromatic 

 hydrocarbons and heterocyclics and their degradation products in sediments. 



Effects on benthos of drilling discharges accumulated through field development, including: changes in 

 benthic diversity, changes in sediment texture/mineralogy, sediment contamination by cuttings from oil- 

 bearing shales, and contamination of sediments by trace metals. 



Effects of produced formation waters discharged offshore. 



Effects of contaminants being recycled and/or accumulated within resident food webs should platforms act 

 as nutrient and/or energy traps (e.g., pathological conditions in fishes). 



Chronic biological effects resulting from the use of antifouling compounds on OCS structures. 



Effects of platform discharges of nutrient-laden effluents, including hydrocarbons, sulfur, and particulate 

 organic material on ecosystem production. 



Reduced fishery stocks due to the mortality of eggs and larvae resulting from low level chronic releases of 

 hydrocarbons associated with routine offshore operations 



Distinguish between habitat-limited species, where the presence of platforms may increase population stocks 

 since habitat is increased, and those species whose populations may be dislocated and aggregated at platforms, 

 but not increased. In the latter case, can the presence of platforms lead to the over exploitation of that 

 species at the site? 



