Reporting takes place in parallel to the Norwegian Pollution Control Authority, the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate and the Petroleum Safety Authority Norway via EnvironmentWeb.

Production discharges to sea

Produced water
The production of oil usually generates water. The amount of water increases as the fields mature and the reservoirs start to run dry. In 2006, the Norwegian Shelf produced 173 million m3 of water. It is the first time since 1997 that such a reduction has been observed. The amount of water discharged to the sea was 144 million m3. The injection of produced water is approximately 25 million m3. That is the same level as in 2005.

Oil in produced water
Water that enters the platforms together with the well stream is either reinjected to the reservoir or cleaned and discharged back to the sea. In 2006, the average concentration of oil (dispersed oil) in the produced water discharged to sea was 16.9 mg/l. This is a reduction compared with 2005 when the concentration of oil was 19.5 mg/l.

As of 2007, all OSPAR countries have adopted a new and comparable method for oil-in-water analyses. At the turn of the year 2006/2007, the maximum permissible oil content in water discharged from installations on the Norwegian Shelf was changed from 40 mg/l to 30 mg/l.

Chemical discharges
The total consumption of chemicals in 2006 was 400 000 tonnes. The total discharged amount was 104 000 tonnes, of which 89 000 tonnes were reinjected. The amount used and the amount of discharged and reinjected chemicals are more or less the same as for previous years.

According to the Norwegian Pollution Control Authority's classification system, chemicals are classified in green, yellow, red or black categories. Chemicals in the green and yellow categories do not have environmentally harmful inherent properties, whereas chemicals in the red and black categories are prioritised for substitution. After the objective of zero discharges was introduced ten years ago, the amount of discharged black chemicals has been reduced from 228 tonnes in 1997 to 3 tonnes in 2006. In the same period, discharges of red chemicals were reduced from 3933 tonnes to 39 tonnes. These figures confirm that the operators' efforts to reach the zero discharges objectives on the Norwegian Shelf have yielded results. According to the Storting white paper No.26 (2006-2007) "Regjeringens miljøpolitikk og rikets miljøtilstand" (The environmental policy of the Norwegian government and the environmental state of the realm), the goal of zero discharges of chemical additives is considered to have been reached, but that the work of substituting chemicals with less environmentally harmful alternatives must continue.

From 2005 to 2006, discharges of category red chemicals were reduced by 58 per cent, whereas discharges of category black chemicals remained at the same level as in 2005.

Acute discharges

Oil
In 2006, 122 m3 of oil was discharged as a result of 122 incidents. Seven of these incidents exceeded 1 m3. By comparison, 377 m3 of oil was discharged in 2005 in 147 incidents, whereof one was a discharge of 340 m3.

Chemicals
In 2006, 443 m3 of chemicals were discharged as acute discharges, following 102 incidents. By comparison, 418 m3of chemicals were discharged, following 130 incidents.

Emissions to air

CO2
In 2006, total emissions of CO2 from the petroleum activities were 11.8 million tonnes. In 2005, the corresponding emissions were 12.2 million tonnes. During the last six years, CO2 emissions from the petroleum activities have been relatively stable. As of 2006, indirect CO2 emissions from CH4 and nmVOC have been included in the total amount of CO2.

According to preliminary figures from Statistics Norway (SBB), Norwegian CO2 emissions totalled 43.3 million tonnes in 2006. This means that the oil and gas industry is responsible for 27 per cent of national CO2 emissions. The largest source of CO2 emissions from the oil and gas industry comes from turbines on offshore installations.

NOx
In 2006, total NOx emissions were 54 348 tonnes, compared with 54 416 tonnes in 2005. During the last seven years, NOx emissions have been relatively stable.

According to preliminary figures from Statistics Norway (SBB), Norwegian NOx emissions totalled 194 506 tonnes in 2006. This means that the oil and gas industry is responsible for 28 per cent of national NOx emissions. Offshore installation turbines constitute the largest source of NOx emissions from the industry.

nmVOC
In 2006, total nmVOC emissions were 79 539 tonnes. This is a significant reduction from 2005, when emissions were 93 549 tonnes. Since 2001, total nmVOC emissions have been reduced by 69 per cent. The reduction is a result of investing in new installations for removal and recycling of oil vapour on storage ships and shuttle tankers.

According to preliminary figures from Statistics Norway (SBB), Norwegian nmVOC emissions totalled 196 345 tonnes in 2006. This means that the oil and gas industry is responsible for 40 per cent of national nmVOC emissions.