MANAGEMENT OF NORM IN THE PETROLEUM INDUSTRY Akpojevwa Tega Naomi, october 2016 | Page 46

absence of such a program can lead to negative environmental impacts (e.g.
contamination of underground water or contamination of soil that could become
a residential or agricultural area in future years) and the associated remediation
cost. Other important criteria for choosing disposal methods are technical
feasibility and general acceptance from the regulatory institutions as well as the
general public.
The disposal methods for NORM waste used nowadays by the oil and gas
industry can be subdivided into five categories: Land based management; Salt
cavern disposal; offshore discharge; Land fill and Underground injection. Their
characteristics are presented in table 3.1:
Table 3.1 Description of disposal methods (OGP 2008).
The selected disposal option for the NORM waste should also take into
consideration, the potential hazards for humans and the environment that
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