Environmental and Social Management of Seismic Operations in Sensitive Tropical Rainforest

摘要

The remaining on-shore petroleum reserves in Ecuador are located within culturally and environmentally sensitive areas of the lowland tropical rainforest at the headwaters of the Amazon Basin, including protected nature reserves and indigenous communities. Regulatory obligations and stakeholder concerns require an extensive formal and informal consultation process prior to petroleum activities in these areas. EnCana and Walsh Environmental Scientists and Engineers (WALSH) have used the first phase of petroleum development in Yasuni National Park (YNP), seismic exploration, to gain the trust and confidence of a diverse group of stakeholders, by adopting an innovative set of new best practices, transparent dialogue and direct participation of the stakeholders. The result of this consultation process was a modified project design and the EMP (Environmental Management Plan) that restricted heliports to previously intervened areas; restricted flight paths of helicopters away from scientific research stations, restricted use of rivers; and created offsets from sensitive micro-habitats like clay/salt licks, animal bathing areas, and tree-cutter ant farms. The execution of the project was closely monitored and audited by EnCana, WALSH, the affected Communities, an independent Environmental and Social Scientific Advisory Committee (ESSAC), an independent auditing consultant associated with the most respected environmental Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) in Ecuador, the Ministries of Environment, Energy and Mines and the National Heritage Institute of the Ecuadorian government. This participatory approach during seismic exploration has facilitated acceptance for the current exploratory drilling activities in this highly sensitive area.