HEALTH , SAFETY & ENVIRONMENT
Dedication to Air Quality and to Your Bottom Line
OGI sits down with Andrew Balch , Director and Principal Consultant of Air Environment , out of Queensland Australia , to discuss why it is so important for companies to be monitoring their air quality . The obvious reasons are of course , to keep up with legal frameworks and responsibilities within their own communities , but as Mr Balch explains , monitoring ones environment can also be an early detection warning system for failures or leakages in a companies assets as well . Businesses should see environmental management as a potential opportunity and cost saving measure , we learn more below .
OGI : Could you tell us a bit about your credentials and experience in the oil and gas sector ? Could you tell our readers the breadth of your experience , how long the company has been active , and its reach ?
Balch : I have significant experience working on air quality related projects for the oil and gas sector . Over 25 years in air quality consulting , I have worked on many large projects from conventional crude oil and shale oil refining to coal seam gas extraction and processing , gas pipelines and LNG production plants .
I have been air quality ’ s technical lead for the development approval of many of the biggest coal seam gas exploration and processing , and LNG plant projects in Australia . This experience included leading the air assessments for five of the six LNG plants initially proposed for the Gladstone Gas Hub , including the now operating Origin Energy Australia Pacific LNG and QGC ’ s Queensland Curtis LNG plants on Curtis Island . I also led the air assessments for both project ’ s upstream CSG extraction , processing and pipeline environmental impact assessments , and several other CSG processing plants including the Origin Energy Ironbark Project . I also led air assessments for gas fired power stations .
Since starting Air Environment in 2013 , I continued my work in the sector , leading the air quality component of the recently approved Santos Narrabri Gas Project . During this time , Air Environment has also worked overseas on gas and hydrocarbon processing projects for Saudi Aramco in Saudi Arabia .
Sampling Odour Emissions From Compost Windrows Using a Flux Chamber and Wind Tunnel Hood .
In addition to its air quality consulting and assessment work , Air Environment also distributes a range of tailor-made multipollutant air quality monitors in Australia developed by the innovative Canadian company Scentroid . The range of gas and particulate sensors can be configured in stationary outdoor and indoor monitoring networks or used in portable handheld and drone mountable units . A large range of pollutant-specific sensors can be configured in each instrument for the oil and gas sector including methane , hydrogen sulfide , nitrogen dioxide , sulfur dioxide , volatile organic compounds and carbon dioxide , to name a few .
OGI : Why is it so important for companies to be monitoring their air quality ?
Balch : Businesses have both a legal and social imperative to ensure that their activities do not adversely impact the environment . All industry requires an environmental authority to operate and must comply with the conditions of approval set out by the regulator . Such conditions typically require a business to have a good understanding of their emissions to air and ensure that these emissions do not contribute to poor air quality outcomes in the environment . How well businesses manage emissions and their impact will affect their social license . While not a legal requirement , the perception of how well a business performs in the environmental space can have a significant effect on their financial performance through negative publicity and product boycotts , among others . For the oil and gas sector , a facility ’ s air emissions can directly affect the health , safety and wellbeing of the local community and their own employees , while greenhouse gas emissions can affect the environment and community more subtly through climate impacts .
Additionally , air quality monitoring observations can be directly useful to businesses in the oil and gas industry as they may indicate process failures or leakage where valuable product is escaping to atmosphere .
OGI : What are some of the consequences for companies that do not effectively manage their environmental responsibilities ?
Balch : Environmental management is not seen as a revenue-generating activity and
Odour Assessor Conducting an Odour Test .
therefore is very easy to neglect . Businesses should see environmental management as part of the cost of doing business and doing it well can provide opportunities and cost savings .
We have seen many cases over the years where companies neglect their environmental responsibilities , however this approach always catches up with them eventually . Typically , the permitting officer for the environmental regulatory authority eventually notices the problem and starts pressuring the company to comply .
We have often seen three stages play out , known as the “ Three D ’ s ”, the denial phase , the delay phase , and the deluge phase . Initially the company denies that there is a problem , or if there is that they are culpable . A lot of energy and bad feeling is expended on all sides to demonstrate that the problem does or doesn ’ t exist . Eventually the regulatory authority prevails , leading to the delay phase . They admit that there is a problem but they don ’ t have the resources to address it . This delay phase may last for a while , with environmental impacts stacking up , but eventually the company is forced into action . During the final deluge phase money and resources are rapidly expended . The problem now must be immediately solved and cost becomes a secondary issue .
Along the way the company may face a range of options that are available to the regulator , including abatement notices , sanctions , changes to the site permit , or even closure of the facility . The company may also gain a reputation for poor compliance , leading to over-regulation by the regulatory authority and a tarnished public image . In extreme cases we have seen major projects fail due to the lack of social licence as a result of ongoing poor environmental performance .