Page 26 - IAGC The Voice 2017

UNITED

KINGDOM

JNCC Guidelines for Minimizing
the Risk of Injury & Disturbance
to Marine Mammals from
Seismic Surveys
IAGC Works with UK OGA on Multi-Client

Data rules to Protect Value of Data The IAGC finds the Joint Nature Conservancy
Committee's (JNCC) most recent draft guidelines
The UK Oil and Gas Authority's (OGA) recently released from November 2016 to be generally clear,
consultation on its 'Proposed Regulations for the straightforward and practical and offered the
Retention and Disclosure of Information and Samples' following input for consideration: continued use of a
which will change how geophysical data collected within simple 500-metre mitigation radius (zone); removal
UK jurisdiction is released in the future. of new, undefined spatial mitigation Areas of
Importance to Marine Mammals (AIMM);
In the 25 August comments, the IAGC agrees with the unnecessarily complex and confusing guidance for
10-year retention of processed data and the 15-year operations during line changes; clarification for
retention of field data but requests more clarification. We Passive Acoustic Monitoring (PAM)
also request exceptions for frontier and reprocessed data, recommendations and requirements; removal of the
commercial return, intellectual property and patents, and Non-Compliance Report Form which is not
geographical areas. The Association does not agree that important; removal of the requirement that an
disclosure of geophysical survey information (licensee, environmental impact statement (EIA) be included
contractor names, start and end dates of the survey, type in the application; and removal of the reference to
of survey, location of the survey) should be released at non-marine mammals from the guidelines.
any point.
In 1995, the UK government adopted guidelines
The Consultation only applies to data acquired after the developed by JNCC to minimize disturbance to small
regulations take effect. Any rules enacted will not have cetaceans from seismic surveys and other operations
any effect on existing data. where acoustic energy is released.

26 THE VOICE