Numerous foundations for smaller buildings such as the operations 

 center, fire station, and administration building will be dug with 

 standard backhoes and trenchers. The buildings involve standard 

 construction methods. 



Barge and tanker terminals often will be installed by marine 

 construction companies subcontracting to the main contractor. Jetties, 

 piers, pilings and dolphins will be installed using barge-mounted equipment 

 such as pile drivers and derrick cranes. Shorelines and bottom 

 modification may take place in the area of the terminal, with the 

 possibility of ajccommodating supertankers which would require water 

 depths of 60 to 90 feet. 



Operations 



Refineries produce a number of petroleum products by physically and 

 chemically altering all or part of the crude oil stream. The system is 



actually a series of complex units, depending upon the number and char- 

 acteristics of the desired products. 



The crude oil arrives at these highly automated facilities by 

 pipeline or tanker and is stored. When it enters the production stream, 

 it may undergo as many as four distinct processes: separation into 

 light, intermediate, or heavy hydrocarbon groups; conversion, which 

 chemically alters the groups into more refined groups (includes polymer- 

 ization, catalytic reforming, and cracking); treatment, which removes 

 the odorous contaminants such as hydrogen sulfide; and blending, which 

 mixes base stocks to produce a wider variety of products. 

 After processing, the products are stored for later distribution by 

 pipeline, ship, barge, or truck. 



Community Effects 



A refinery has the following characteritics of particular community 

 interest; a large parcel of land, high employment, high investment, high 

 service requirements, air pollution, and high requirements for water. 



Employment : A refinery is the largest employer of the fifteen OCS 

 projects during the construction phase. One study estimates the average 

 work force to construct a refinery handling 200,000 barrels a day would 

 be 1,800 persons with a peak force of 2,900. Further, 1,000 members of 

 the peak level work force fall into skilled labor categories [28]. A 

 project of this scale would attract many new or temporary residents 

 unless it occurred near a major metropolitan area. 



The operating staff for a refinery this size is approximately 550 

 persons. Subdividing this total, 55 are administrative support, 440 are 



185 



