Evaluation of the Ecological Impacts of Open-Loop Vaporization Technology at Offshore Liquified Natural Gas Terminals

R. Dreas Nielsen, Thomas Ginn, Ph.D., Paul D. Boehm, Ph.D., Linda Ziccardi

Introduction

To meet an anticipated increase in the demand for natural gas in the United States, several new offshore terminals for the receipt and distribution of liquefied natural gas (LNG) have been licensed or proposed for construction in the Gulf of Mexico. All of these facilities are designed to use open loop vaporization (OLV) technology, in which warm water is used to re-gasify the LNG. Seawater used in the OLV systems is cooled by 13 to 22 degrees F, and is chlorinated to prevent fouling. Environmental impact statements (EISs) prepared by the U.S. Coast Guard(USCG) have found that the OLV systems of these proposed facilities will have minimal impacton marine resources in the Gulf.

A substantial number of comments on the EISs focused on the potential impacts to fisheries in the Gulf. Many of the comments centered on the potential impacts to key species such as red drum (Sciaenops ocellatus) and red snapper (Lutjanus campechanus). To address these concerns, Exponent was retained by the Center for LNG to assess the scientific validity of the overall conclusions of the EISs. This evaluation focused on the data sources, the assumptions, the data summarization methods, the fish population models, and the assessment criteria used in the EISs.

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8th International Conference on Mercury as a Global Pollutant

Exponent Scientists Gary Bigham and Betsy Henry will be chairing a special session titled Bases for Remediation Decisions at Mercury- Contaminated Soil and Sediment Sites (How Clean is Clean?) at the 8th International Conference on Mercury as a Global Pollutant (ICMGP), to be held this year in Madison, WI, August 6–11. The ICMGP is the premier conference on all aspects of mercury in the environment.

This session will focus on the issue of determining the extent of remediation (cleanup) at mercurycontaminated soil and sediment sites. Site assessment and remediation of mercurycontaminated sites continues to be a problematic situation both in the U.S. and in other countries. Although the production and use of mercury has decreased since the late 1970s, import and use are increasing in some countries (e.g., China, India) and residual contamination poses ongoing risks to human health and the environment. Sites contaminated by mercury in Europe and North America from historic mining and operation of mercury cell chloralkali plants as well as other sites will be addressed. Each presentation will present a brief overview of the problem, the extent of the cleanup (planned or completed), and will focus on describing how the extent of the cleanup was decided. The combination of science, policy, and socioeconomic factors that influence cleanup decisions will be highlighted.

Presentations will contrast cleanup approaches that range from sitespecific risk-based approaches to use of generic cleanup values to approaches where socio-economic considerations are most influential. The presentations will also highlight the uncertainty inherent in determining cleanup levels for mercury in soils and sediment. The sites addressed will cover a range of the nature of contamination (elemental mercury and mercuric sulfide), extent of contamination (relatively small industrial sites to regional), contaminated media (soil, sediment, groundwater, surface water), and populations at risk (terrestrial and aquatic ecological and human receptors). Remediation technologies will also be identified. Publication of an overview of the papers and posters presented at the conference is planned.

For more information on the conference, or to register, please visit www.mercury2006.org.

Recent/Upcoming Conferences & Presentations

ABA Environmental, Mass Torts, and Product Liability Litigation Committees Joint CLE Seminar
Vail, CO
January 5–7, 2006
http://www.abanet.org/litigation/jointcleseminar/

Exponent Booth

Ninth Annual Advanced American Law Institute-American Bar Association (ALI-ABA) Course of Study: Environmental and Toxic Tort Litigation
Scottsdale, AZ
January 26–27, 2006
https://www.ali-aba.org/aliaba/CL080.htm

Exponent Booth

ABA Section of Environment, Resources & Energy Annual Meeting
Keystone, CO
March 9–12, 2006
http://www.abanet.org/environ/programs/keystone/2006/

Roundtable

Exponent Booth

16th Annual Association for Environmental Health and Sciences (AEHS) West Coast Conference on Soil, Sediments, and Water
March 13–16, 2006
San Diego, CA

Marsh Restoration and Water Management Planning in Southern Iraq
D. Hamilton

Accident Event Identification and Source Verification Using Historical Ambient Air Monitoring Data by ISC Modeling
G. Brugger

The Scientific Estimation of Historical Deposition of and Exposure to Contaminants Released to the Air
G. Brugger

Chemical Fingerprinting of Dioxins Using a Similarity Index
L. Benton

8th International Conference on Mercury as a Global Pollutant
Madison, WI
August 6–11, 2006
http://www.mercury2006.org

Special session:
Bases for Remediation Decisions at Mercury-Contaminated Soil and Sediment Sites
Chairs: G. Bigham and B. Henry

Recent/Upcoming Publications

Boehm, P.D., H.K. Kytomaa, and P.D. Moncarz.  2005.  LNG Projects: Myths and Realities of Environmental and Safety Risks. American Bar Association (ABA) Energy Committees Newsletter, October 2005.

Boehm, P.D., C.L. Maxon, F.C. Newton, J.S. Brown, and Y. Galperin.  2005.  Aspects of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in offshore sediments in the Azeri sector of the Caspian Sea. In: Offshore Oil and Gas Environmental Effects Monitoring: Approaches and Technologies.  S.L. Armsworthy, P.J. Cranford and K. Lee (eds.).  Battelle Press, Columbus, OH.

Boehm, P.D.  2005.  Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHS).  Chapter 15.  In: Environmental Forensics: Contaminant Specific Guide.  R.D. Morrison and B.L. Murphy (eds.)  Academic Press, San Diego, CA.

Bigham, G.N., B. Henry, and B. Bessinger.  2005. Mercury.  Chapter 1.  In: Environmental Forensics: Contaminant Specific Guide.  R.D. Morrison and B.L. Murphy (eds.)  Academic Press, San Diego, CA.

Morrison, R.D., and B.L. Murphy (eds).  2005.  Environmental Forensics: Contaminant Specific Guide.  Academic Press, San Diego, CA.

Morrison, R.D., B.L. Murphy, and R.E. Doherty.  2005.  Chlorinated Solvents.  Chapter 12.  In: Environmental Forensics: Contaminant Specific Guide.  R.D. Morrison and B.L. Murphy (eds.) Academic Press, San Diego, CA.

Shields, W., Y. Tondeur, L. Benton, and M. Edwards.  2005.  Dioxins and Furans.  Chapter 14.  In: Environmental Forensics: Contaminant Specific Guide.  R.D. Morrison and B.L. Murphy (eds.) Academic Press, San Diego, CA.

New Faces

Kathi Futornick
Managing Scientist, Environmental Sciences, Lake Oswego, OR
Ms. Futornick specializes in water quality and hazardous waste management issues, as well as environmental management systems and strategic planning.  She has 32 years of experience managing environmental projects for both the private and public sectors.  She provides technical and strategic consultation to the regulated community on site investigations, regulatory support, negotiations with agencies, pollution prevention, and environmental management systems. 
She can be reached at (503) 624-5523 or via email, kfutornick@exponent.com.

Julian Levy
Senior Managing Scientist, Environmental Sciences, Washington, DC
Mr. Levy has more than three decades of experience in all managerial and technical phases of air quality.  Mr. Levy’s most recent focus has been on strategic air quality support, air quality permitting, compliance and litigation support, regulatory analysis, agency negotiation, and rule development.  Mr. Levy’s areas of expertise also include meteorology, atmospheric dispersion modeling, ambient air quality monitoring, and air pollutant emissions assessment.

He can be reached at (202) 772-4902 or via email, jlevy@exponent.com.

Pamela Rey, P.E.
Managing Engineer, Environmental Sciences, Oakland, CA
Ms. Rey has more than 25 years of experience in environmental engineering consulting projects. She uses her understanding of prescriptive requirements for cleanup included in federal, state, and local legislation and ordinances, as well as reforms that allow for balanced development of site cleanup, to develop site remedies that are focused on planned or potential future site use.
She can be reached at (510) 268-5062 or via email, prey@exponent.com.

Tarek Saba, Ph.D.
Senior Scientist, Environmental Sciences, Maynard, MA
Dr. Saba specializes in environmental forensics supporting contaminant liability and cost allocation cases, litigation support of MGPs remedial cost recovery, and numerical design/optimization of groundwater remediation systems.
He can be reached at (978) 461-1233 or via email, tsaba@exponent.com.