Page Reviewer Comment 



well may not be a problem, if 25 to 50 wells are 

 drilled from one platform, the metals could be a 

 problem. 



103 James Ray [Questions use of description "low-toxicity" for 



barium, since elsewhere in the workshop, barium 

 has been described as nontoxic] 



103 Brad Butman [Comments on the effects of barium] Although 



the concentrations from one well may be low, 

 multiple wells may provide significant 

 concentrations in confined areas. Although 

 apparently nontoxic, the physical effects of 

 barium {it is heavier and finer than the natural 

 sediments) may influence the benthic communities 

 in subtle ways. For example, in the MMS- 

 supported California Area Monitoring Program 

 (CAMP), careful laboratory experiments have 

 shown that feeding rates (as indicated by fecal - 

 pellet production) of polychete worms 

 {Mediomastus ambeseta) decreased with barium 

 concentrations on the order of 0.1 to 1 percent. 

 (Personal communication, Dr. Cheryl Ann Butman, 

 Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods 

 Hole, MA). More details of the barium 

 calculations should be presented (volume, area 

 of distribution, mixing depth, number of wells, 

 etc.) . 



104 Pat Hughes [Expands on statement that settlement of fine 



material from drilling would be unlikely to 

 alter physical characteristics of canyon 

 sediment so as to preclude larval settlement of 

 benthic organisms. Points out that the data 

 are] .. .inconclusive as to the potential risk of 

 chemical impacts to larval settling, etc. 



104 Page Valentine [Suggests that the role of krill in possible 



hydrocarbon accumulation in canyons is through 

 fecal pellets, recalling the workshop statement 

 that "the feeding activity of krill in surface 

 waters results in the production of rapidly 

 settling large fecal aggregates."] 



105 James Ray Because of the nature of gas blowouts, it is 



very unlikely that there would be significant 

 environmental [effects]. 



A-4 



