United States – Canada Northern Oil and Gas Research ForumNov. 13-15, 2012 D.B. Fissel 1, P. D. Osborne 2, E. Ross 1, M.G. Lowings 3. D. Driver 4, D. Barber

United States – Canada Northern Oil and Gas Research Forum Nov. 13-15, 2012

D.B. Fissel1, P. D. Osborne2, E. Ross1, M.G. Lowings3. D. Driver4, D. Barber5, M. Fortier6 and K. Lévesque6

1 ASL Environmental Sciences Inc., Victoria, BC Canada; 2 IMG-Golder Corporation (Golder Associates Inc) Burnaby, BC, Canada; 3 IMG-Golder

Corporation (Golder Associates Ltd), Calgary, AB, Canada; 4BP Exploration, Houston, TX USA; 5ArcticNet, U. Manitoba, Winnipeg MB Canada;

6ArcticNet, U. Laval, QC, Canada

A Collaborative Program of Mooring Based Studies In the Ajurak and Pokak

Exploration Licence Areas of the Canadian Beaufort Sea, July 2009 to September

2011:Sea Ice and Ocean Waves


The Materials Presented are based upon work supported by:- Imperial Oil Resources Ventures Limited- BP Exploration Company and - ExxonMobil Canada

Acknowledgements

- J. Hawkins and N. Darlow, Imperial Oil Resources Ventures Ltd;- James Hall and Dmitri G. Matskevitch, ExxonMobil Upstream

Research;- Cynthia Pyc and David Driver, BP Exploration Company

ArcticNet is funded by:- the Networks of Centres of Excellence (NCE) Program of the

National Sciences and Engineering Research Council

(NSERC) of Canada

Research Program Review and Approval: Inuvialuit Settlement Region Community Consultations via Industry and ArcticNet


Collaborative Research Program- Introduction

• Early 2000’s: Renewed Interest in Offshore Oil and Gas Exploration of the Canadian Beaufort Sea

• 2007: Exploration licence (EL) 446 (Ajurak) - Imperial Oil Resources Ventures Limited (IORVL) and ExxonMobil Canada Limited

• 2008: Exploration licences EL 449 (Pokak), EL 451 and 453 to BP Exploration Operating Company Limited

• Adopted a risk-based approach to hydrocarbon exploration activities and interaction with the environment.

• 2009-2011: IORVL and BP adopting a multi-disciplinary, multi-year, collaborative data collection strategy.

• 2011: Formation of a new joint venture of BP and IORVL with Imperial Oil designated as the Operator (for EL 446/449)


Collaborative Research Program- Overview

A Multi-Disciplinary Industry-Academic Collaborative Research Program involving:

- IORVL and BP- ArcticNet (U. Laval, U. Manitoba and other member universities)- Consulting Companies (ASL, IMG-Golder and Kavik-Stantec)

2009-11: Major Program – Inshore to Far Offshore Areas


Data Collection Overview: 2009-2012- Ongoing

Summer 2009: CCGS Amundsen (late July-Sept.)- Outer Shelf and Slope: 9 Sub-surface

Moorings; 2 surface buoysCCGS Nahidik (mid July-mid Sept.)- Inner Shelf: 2 Moorings; extensive ship-based sampling

Fall 2009-Summer 2010:- Continuous Measurements from 50 Instruments on 8 Moorings

Summer 2010 and 2011:CCGS Amundsen (Aug.-Sept.)

Fall 2010-Summer 2011:- Continuous Measurements from 50 Instruments on 8 Moorings

BREA: Fall 2011- Fall 2012 (Ongoing)- 25+ Instruments /4-5 Moorings - CCGS Laurier - Deployed 5 Moorings


CCGS Amundsen Moorings Design

Subsurface (Taut-Line) MooringsASL Ice Profiler

Distributed Flotation to key mooring upright (resist tilting and current knockdown

ADCP: Ocean Current Profiles and Ice Velocities

Single Point Current Meters

Other Water Parameters measuredAll:Temperature, Salinity (T,S) - all

Some: Turbidity, Dissolved Oxygen, Chlorophyll

Sediment Pumps and Traps (A.1 and G only)

Dual Acoustic Releases (for recovery)

Steel Anchor Weights on bottom

Mooring H


Instruments on Moorings: 2010-2011-Example

Site (water depth)

IPS ADCP 150 300 kHz¤

ADCP 75 kHz LR

DVS 750> 500m -

750 m

DVS 6000 > 750m

Temp./Salinity; Other Water Properties

A1 (684 m)

174 m

1108 m

1429 m

1670 m

-- 44: 74 to 654 m

A2 (608 m)

162 m

1145 m

1446 m

1593 m

-- 44: 62 to 594 m

B (149 m)

162 m

1 124 m

-- -- -- 262 and 139 m

F (1003 m)

153 m

1109 m

1414 m

2555m

4657-987m

353, 120 &450 m

G (706 m)

1**43 m

1** 1437 m

1585 m

1691 m

4 (2**)131, 475 m

H (363 m)

174 m

1147 m

1310 m

-- -- 373, 164 & 351 m

I (73 m)

159 m

1 ¤60 m

-- -- -- 159 m

J (82 m)

150 m

162 m

-- -- -- 150 m

Total 7 7 5 5 5 20

Legend(Instrument depth)Partial Data Recovery** upper mooring lost


Sea Ice: Detailed Ice Draft Topography – Upward Looking Sonars (ULS)

Landsat 5 Image – July 27, 2009

(during deployment) ========

Overview of ULS (ASL Ice Profiler and ADCP) Data Sets Collected: 2009-2011

2009-2010: 8 offshore locations with simultaneous data collection of ice drafts and ice velocities

2010-2011: 7 offshore locations with simultaneous data collection, as above

Continuous Ice Draft Data – 2 s samples, 1 m horizontal resolution


Sea Ice Drafts: Seasonal Variability

Presence of Large Ice Keels:- Start: mid-Oct./Nov.; - Extending to following summer (early June to early Sept)- Total Ice Season: up to 11 months- Highly Episodic Occurrences; Most Deformed Ice from Winter to mid-Spring


Sea Ice: Detailed Ice Draft Topography

Change in Ice Distance: (10/11 vs 09/10)

• More Ice at Deep Locations (F,A) than at Inner Slope (B) and Shelf Edge (I)

• Reduced by 25% at Shelf Edge and• 10-15% Offshore

Changes in Number of Large Ice Keels• No. Ice Keels > 8 m draft: -22 to - 46%• No. Ice Keels > 11 m draft: -24 to +24• No. Ice Keels > 15 m: I&J: 75 vs 67: +11%

• Site F: 35 vs 55: -36%


Sea Ice Velocity:Ice Velocities using Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) at 15 min. intervals

Typical Speed –Direction Distribution:


Sea Ice Velocity:

2010-2011

Ice Drift to W-NW but episodic reversals to SE due to winds and Coriolis effects

Highest Speeds in Fall, Low in Winter


Ocean Waves

Data Sets Collected: 2009-2011

Summer 2009: 11 locations simultaneous wave data - incl. 2 inshore (dir. waves)

2009-2010; 2010-201: subsurface mooring measurements at 8 and 7 sitesLargest Waves from the North East

i.e., prevailing wind direction


Large Ocean Wave Episodes: 2009-2011

Episodic Wave Events throughout Open Water Season:Each Year: 10 events of Significant Wave Heights (Hs) > 2m

Hs < 3 m in Summer; Larger in Fall

Largest Wave Event: Hs = 4.9 m (Nov. 5, 2010; E. Winds up to 20 m/s)

2009 Largest Wave - Oct. 22-26, 2009: Hs 3.9 m (site J) to 4.2 m (site F)

Hs can vary considerably among mooring sites according to:- Wind Fetch Distance and Local and Regional Sea Ice Conditions

Measured Many Episodes of “Waves In Ice” - Measured Swell Waves of up 15 s period and Ice Floe Fracturing


Summary and Conclusions:

Collaborative Industry-Academic Oceanographic Ice Research Program in the Canadian Beaufort Sea • Supported a multi-disciplinary, multi-year, collaborative data

collection strategy by the Oil Industry• Summer of 2009 to Summer 2011• Very Extensive Data Sets • Operation of 8 Year-Round Subsurface Moorings for 26 Months

• Over 100 Continuous Year-Long Time Series Data Sets plus

• Many Shorter Summer-Only Time Series Data

• Augmented by Extensive Ship-Based and Airborne Remote Sensing Programs

• 2011-2013:Continued Operation of 4-5 Moorings – BREA Program

Applications of the Scientific Data - Industry :A. Baseline Data Collection for Environmental Approvals ProcessB. Support Engineering Design and Project Planning


Summary and Conclusions (Cont’d)

C. Data Sets- Scientific Research Projects (ArcticNet-Industry)• Scientific Papers are now In Preparation:• In Arctic Oceanography and Sea Ice

Sea Ice Research - Examples:• Ice Mass Changes within the Canadian Beaufort Sea – NE to W. Areas• Ice Data Fusion: Advancing the Methodology of Combined Remote

Sensing and Moored Sea Ice Measurements• Sea Ice Velocity Characterizations at Synoptic and Inertial Time Scales

Ocean Wave Research - Examples:• Wave Climatology from IPS and Radarsat• Waves in Ice (Observations and Modeling)

Also Research Papers in • Ocean Currents and Upwelling, • Sediment Processes• Other Topics


Ice Data Sets - Offshore Moorings 2009-2011Ice Data from Ajurak / Pokak Moorings

Site J A S O N D J F MA M J J A S O N D J F MA M J J A SF (z)F (v)

A.1 (z)A.1 (v)A.2 (z)A.2 (v) * * *B (z)B (v)

2009 2010 2011

G (z) * * * * * * * * * * * *G (v) * * * * * * * * * * * *H (z)H (v)J (z)J (v) * * *I (z)I (v)

Sea Ice DraftsWave DataIce Velocity DataMissing Data - no ice

* Missing Data - instrument failed/not recovered

Ocean Currents/ T-S Results: See Poster Paper by Osborne at al, this conference


Ocean Waves

Late-July to mid-Oct. 2009 Site A:

• ULS (ASL IPS5) instruments provide non-directional measurements year-round

• Unlike Wave Buoys which are limited to Short Summer Deployments

ASL IPS5 Subsurface Mooring

ArcticNet Surface Buoy

Documents

United States – Canada Northern Oil and Gas Research ForumNov. 13-15, 2012 D.B. Fissel 1, P. D. Osborne 2, E. Ross 1, M.G. Lowings 3. D. Driver 4, D. Barber