39 



2.2.1 



NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL ASSESSMENT OF 



MARINE ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING: IMPLICATIONS FOR MONITORING 



OIL AND GAS DEVELOPMENT IN THE GULF OF MEXICO 



Dr. Donald F. Boesch 



Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium 



Chauvin, LA 70344 



The Marine Board of the National Research Council has recently completed an assessment of environmental 

 monitoring of U.S. coastal waters. I chaired a committee of experts which conducted this assessment which 

 resulted in a report "Managing Troubled Waters: The Role of Marine Environmental Monitoring" to be published 

 by the National Academy of Sciences Press in March 1990 (National Research Council 1990). The following is 

 a brief overview of the findings together with a discussion of the implications of these findings for the design 

 of environmental monitoring of oil and gas development in the Gulf of Mexico. 



The Committee on a Systems Assessment of Marine Environmental Monitoring developed a framework for 

 assessing the adequacy of monitoring which included not only technical design and implementation, but evaluation 

 of the objectives of monitoring and the use of monitoring results (i.e., the monitoring system). It then directed 

 three case studies in which experiences could be related to this framework. Two of these case studies concerned 

 specific geographic regions and the third concerned monitoring the effects of particulate waste disposal in the 

 ocean. Particulate wastes considered included dredged materials, sewage sludge, and oil and gas drilling and 

 production discharges. Because of their relevance to offshore oil and gas development activities, the findings of 

 the particulate waste case study are briefly reviewed. 



With respect to institutional concerns, the particulate waste case study found that: (1) there is insufficient 

 communication and coordination between agencies responsible for monitoring discharges; (2) there are frequently 

 inaccurate public expectations of monitoring which, when not met, diminish confidence in the ability to manage 

 the marine environment; (3) there are ocean disposal statutes and regulations with vaguely defined environmental 

 goals as well as human health objectives; (4) problems frequently occur in making results available to decision 

 makers in a timely fashion; and (5) public pressure has often brought about policy changes that are not supported 

 by the results of monitoring. With regard to technical implementation, the case study reported that (1) 

 monitoring design has not always been based upon an understanding of natural environmental variability; (2) it 

 has been difficult to apply classical measures of biological or chemical change in the determination of 

 unacceptable effects because the linkage between these changes and living resources is poorly understood; (3) 

 data management and analysis are often the weak links in monitoring programs; (4) although quality assurance 

 and quality control procedures have improved greatly, improvements are still needed; and (5) once a monitoring 

 program is implemented, there tends to be resistance to any change which limits improving its efficiency. 



The particulate waste case study noted that most monitoring has tended to be of a compliance and short-term, 

 near-field nature. The responsibility for monitoring long-term system-wide impacts has been inadequately filled 

 because of unclear responsibilities, abdication of responsibility, or lack of resources. While adequate compliance 

 monitoring tools exist, trend monitoring tools, including instrumentation and conceptual and numerical models, 

 are primitive and inadequate. 



The Committee considered these findings, those of the other case studies and other evidence to develop overall 

 conclusions and recommendations under three general headings. 



MONITORING CAN STRENGTHEN ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 



The Committee concluded that marine environmental monitoring is an effective technology for defining the extent 

 and severity of pollution, evaluating environmental policies and actions, helping to estimate the risks and 

 consequences of future actions, and detecting emerging problems before they become severe. It is part of a 

 broader complement of technical contributions to environmental management, which also includes fate and 

 effects research and predictive modeling, which are seldom effectively coupled with monitoring to support 

 integrated decision making. Monitoring needs to be an integral part of an effective environmental management 



