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The Sea of Okhotsk region:
oil and gas infrastructure and threats to ecosystems

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The Sea of Okhotsk is one of the purest and the richest in marine biological resources. It provides about 60% of all Russian fishing resources. It is a home for many rare and endangered species of whales, seals and other marine mammals; the rookeries of many species of birds can also be found on the seashores here.

But very often areas of traditional fishery and areas with high biological productivity coincide with areas of high shelf oil-and-gas content. Active development of oil and gas resources is carried out on Sakhalin shelf now (Sakhalin-1 and Sakhalin-2 Projects). Conditions for hydrocarbon extraction are prepared on Western Kamchatka Shelf - in the summer of 2008 Kamchatneftegaz (a subsidiary company of Rosneft) drilled its first prospecting well (West-Sukhanovskaya-1). The Federal Subsoil Resources Management Agency (Rosnedra) has not prolonged the term of Rosneft's license for geological exploration of the West-Kamchatka block (license had expired on August 1st, 2008). The Issue on this license was submitted for Russian Governmental consideration, but according to Bloomberg information agency, Korea National Oil Corporation (KNOC) and Rosneft will sign a new contract to resume the project off the western coast of the Kamchatka peninsula by the end of this year and start exploration in the second half of 2009.

Considering that there are very difficult environmental and navigational conditions on the Okhotsk Sea as well as there is a lack of experience in the world for design, construction and operation of marine oil-and-gas industry facilities in such conditions, the problem of offshore hydrocarbons development seems to be difficult and needs to be investigated for possible alternative solutions.

Russian environmental organizations persuade Federal lawmakers to give the Sea of Okhotsk special priority status with regards to conservation of marine biological resources, development of the traditional nature management (fishery) and restriction of oil and gas development.

Here you can see the interactive map "Oil-Gas Threats to Okhotsk Sea Ecoregion", which represents the second stage of the Russian Arctic Project.

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