asked the Minister for Energy if his attention has been drawn to a report by the Advisory Committee on Oil Pollution of the dangers of pollution from wells being drilled in deep water on the Irish portion of the Continental Shelf off the west coast, and the special precautions, if any, being taken to prevent the possibility of pollution.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - West Coast Oil Pollution.
37.
While I have seen the newspaper reports on this matter I have not yet seen the report by the Advisory Committee on Oil Pollution to which the Deputy refers. From the press reports it would seem that the committee expressed some concern at the risks associated with oil production in very deep waters by means of a system involving the loading of oil into a moored tanker through a flexible hose.
I would point out that at the present time there is no oil production from any area offshore Ireland. Even if the drilling in the Porcupine Basin this summer should confirm the encouraging results we have had from this area over the past two years, it would still be some time before we would know whether or not a commercial oilfield had been delineated. There would then be several years of development work before oil production would commence.
In the event of a commercial discovery of oil the licensees will be obliged to submit for my approval a development plan for the exploitation of the field. Any such plan, which would include detailed proposals on all the technical aspects of field development, will be examined most thoroughly; and only if I am satisfied that the proposed production system is satisfactory, particularly from a safety and pollution prevention point of view, will I approve the development.
I might point out in this respect that research on deep-water production systems is proceeding at such a rapid pace that it would be premature to reach conclusions about the type of systems which may be considered most suitable for deep-water production by the time the development stage might arise off our west coast.
The licensing conditions which apply during the present exploration phase and those which would apply to oil production impose strict obligations on operators to take all necessary measures to prevent pollution taking place.
I admit that this arises out of a subordinate part of Question No. 37, but could I ask the Minister if his Department, because of the energy relevance of the thing, are taking an interest in the proposed arbitration of the Continental Shelf division between ourselves and the British?
That seems to be a completely separate question.
Provided I am not pushed any further, the answer is yes.
I shall not push the Minister any further, but may I ask him to extend his interests so far, at least, as to ascertain the legal resources of the State which, as he will discover by a tactful inquiry, are probably not adequate to the workload which this arbitration implies and if he would use his influence to make sure that whatever expert resources are necessary will be provided to the appropriate degree?
We are getting into a completely new oilfield.
I do not wish to pursue this matter further. It is not my primary responsibility but my recollection—and I am speaking purely from recollection—is that steps have been taken to assist and strengthen the legal expertise available to the State in this regard.
I am glad to hear it. This is a very urgent matter.
Questions Nos. 38, 39 and 40 postponed.