Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/248536
News maltatoday, Sunday, 26 January 2014 Oil exploration: risk assessment will not be published James Debono The government has obliged oil drillers Mediterranean Oil and Gas Ltd to conduct an environmental risk assessment, an oil spill contingency plan, and a report on major hazards before drilling an exploratory well 130 km off the Maltese coast. But these reports will not be issued for public consultation or made available to the public, as happens with environmental impact studies on terrestrial projects. The reports prepared by the private company will be assessed by unnamed experts appointed by the government. A spokesperson for Transport Minister Joe Mizzi revealed that the seismic and geological risks of the drilling operation were assessed in a report on major hazards prepared by Phoenicia Energy Company Limited, which is part of an international joint venture in an oil production sharing agreement with the Maltese government. Italian geologist Carlo Cassaniti has warned of the catastrophic dangers posed by offshore drilling in the seabed around Malta in the absence of studies assessing the "volcanic and seismic" instability of the seabed in the Sicilian Channel. "The entire Sicilian Channel is characterised by an elevated seismic danger due to the presence of submarine volcanoes and important tectonic structures," Cassaniti had warned in an interview published in MaltaToday in September 2013. Cassaniti insisted on the publication of a comprehensive risk map of the seabed before any oil exploration activities are conducted. A ministry spokesperson explained that the environmental assessment will be carried out in accordance with the requirements of the Offshore Protocol of the Barcelona Convention. This will be the first time that such an assessment is held before oil exploration activities take place. "An environmental assessment is not mandatory for an exploratory well but government asked the company to conduct this assessment prior to commencing drilling operations," the spokesperson said. The environmental risk assessment will assess the potential risks and the impacts on the environment associated with the drilling activity and proposes mitigation measures. The Continental Shelf Department will assess the reports, which is the competent authority to receive these reports. Since the exploratory well will be drilled well outside territorial waters, it does not fall within the jurisdiction of the Malta Environment and Planning Authority (MEPA) which is bound by law to publish any study and submit impact studies to public consultation. Unlike environment assessment reports on terrestrial development the risk assessment report on the exploratory well will not be made public. At present there is no specific legislative framework to regulate oil drilling apart from the Continental Shelf Act and the Production Sharing Contract between the government and the company licensed to carry out the drilling. The EU Directive on Offshore Safety will come into force as from July 2015. The company licensed to carry out the drilling activity will carry out the risk assessment. But government has engaged unnamed experts to review the reports submitted by the oil company and to recommend their acceptance or otherwise. READ MORE Geologist warns of oil exploration risks http://bit.ly/1eMC8H9