Environmental Impact of Oil Production and Refinery in Venezuela - Coursework Example

Environmental Impact of Oil Production and Refinery in Venezuela Name: Institution: Date: Oil Production and Refinery in Venezuela Oil is cheapest and freely traded in Venezuela. In his book, Crude Nation: How Oil Riches Ruined Venezuela, Gallegos (2016) gives an example of one filling station among 1,691 across Venezuela that sold a gallon of premium unleaded gas for six U.S. cents in 2015. He further continues to state that Venezuela gasoline is the cheapest in the world. That giving a tip to a gas station attendant is more costly than the cost of filling the tank such that these gas station attendants earn more from tips than they do from salaries. Venezuela’s government owns some of the largest oil refineries in the world, including in the United States, United Kingdom, Scotland, and Sweden and in the Caribbean. Venezuela has a very powerful presence in the world’s energy business. Low oil prices in Venezuela have been as a result of the collapse in oil prices since mid-2014, and Venezuela qualifies as one of the hardest hit by this collapse (Monaldi 2015). Fossil fuels are classified as non-renewable fuels. Fossil fuels are being used up much more quickly than they are getting produced. Today, there is a high usage of energy, and it is impossible for such high usage of energy to be sustained by the fossil fuels left. Venezuela hosts the largest oil reserve in the world. Also, the country hosts the second largest natural gas reserve in the world (Walker 2013). Most of the oil produced in Venezuela is exported to the United States where it meets around 15 percent of the US energy requirements. Venezuela’s oil earns the government approximately half of its annual revenues. The government-owned petroleum refinery (PDVSA) represents one of the companies whose operations have caused adverse health effects for people in many parts of the world. The company trades leaded gasoline in Venezuela and other parts of the U.S., U.K., Sweden, and Scotland among other parts. Its operations take place in places where they cause significant environmental pollution. Environmental problems in Venezuela are wholly generated by state-owned corporations, including Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A. (PDVSA). Oil refinery sector represents the main income generator in Venezuela, with PDVSA maintaining monopoly since it is the only producer of gasoline in the country. The operations of PDVSA lead to the harmful effects as a result of lead generated during combustion (Romero 1996). Also, Venezuela represents the country with the largest number of vehicles per capita in the region of Latin America. That is, there is one vehicle in every 6.71 individuals. This situation is further worsened by the low prices of fuel (six U.S. cents per gallon) (Gallegos, 2016). The ever-increasing numbers of automobiles and low oil prices have led to a drastic rise in gasoline consumption in the recent past due to the increased amounts of lead emitted into the atmosphere. Lead pollution from oil represents the largest amount (85 percent) of lead pollution sources in the country. The development of Orinoco Oil Belt which is the main generator of oil in Venezuela incorporating 4 areas such as Boyaca, Ayacucho, Carabobo, and Junin, continues to cause major environmental impacts on the surrounding areas as well as climate impacts. Among the major natural resources in the area is Orinoco River which is 2,140 km in length and 37,384 m3/s in volume (www.boel.de). Also, the area is one of the most important wetlands in the world with a critical habitat and endangered species. Despite The importance of this region in terms of natural resources, no comprehensive environmental impact analysis has been conducted. PDVSA’s 2010 environmental report only contains a limited amount of information on the current atmospheric emissions. However, it does not give a comprehensive impact analysis. However, another recent study by a network of 20 NGOs dubbed ARA analyzed the seriousness of current oil extraction in the country (www.boel.de). According to the findings of this report, the overly cheap fuels, uncontrolled consumption, and poor environmental oversight are jointly having intense environmental impacts on the country, including polluting air, water, and soil. The report highlighted very specific key concerns including the deterioration of sensitive ecosystems in oil production sites across Orinoco Oil Belt and destruction of ecosystems surrounding Lake Maracaibo due to continuous leaks and spills. Soil erosion triggered by exploration and production zones around Orinoco Oil Belt. Other environmental liabilities such as holding pits which are leading to the increased risk of leaching and overflowing. Inappropriate handling of by-products from refineries, including coke and Sulfur leading to the soil, water, and air pollution in the areas surrounding these production sites; increased emission of NOx, SO2, and CO2 from upgrading and refining processes. Discharging of oil products into water bodies; and soil pollution and degradation from both exploration and engineering processes (www.boel.de). This situation is made even worse by the Ministry of Environment’s failure to implement the existing environmental monitoring and regulations. Also, these regulations are outdated, and the Ministry of Environment does not have an adequate number of employees who have the technical expertise to implement the legally required EIAs. The report concluded that there should be a complete overhaul of Venezuela’s policy framework to manage environmental impacts in the country adequately. There are several products that result from oil combustion, including carbon dioxide and water as the main products (Assuncao 2014). Other by-products include nitrogen oxides, sulphur oxides, carbon monoxide, organic compounds, carbon particles (soot), and several other metals. Most of these by-products are classified as pollutants because they react in the atmosphere resulting to other pollutants, including nitrates, sulfates, and ozone. Oil combustion has been found to impact on the health of people surrounding areas in which these activities take place. The metal that has the most adverse effect is lead, and it represents the most common in Venezuela. As early as 1986, lead concentrations in the air around Venezuela’s major cities had surpassed those in the U.S. Since there is an increase in automobile usage in Venezuela compared to the situation in 1986, it is probable that this concentration has increased. When inhaled, lead finds its way into blood leading to costly and serious health effects. The first study was conducted by the University of Corabobo (1987) in 1983 investigating the presence of lead in people’s blood, and it showed that there is 15 micrograms/deciliter for people in Caracas. Also, there are 12 micrograms per deciliter for those in Valencia. This level was very high exceeding the 10 micrograms per deciliter required by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. If one assumes that individuals’ samples are representative of the total Venezuela’s population, then the level of lead concentrations in the majority of people (75 percent) exceeds the U.S. standard. Individuals with high lead concentrations in their blood are likely to exhibit symptoms such as anemia, loss of memory, general body weakness, poor coordination, and irritability. Such health effects beg the question as to why leaded gasoline is still used in Venezuela. According to Croquer, Bone, Bastidas, Ramos, and Garcia (2016), emissions from gasoline producing plants have caused significant environmental damage in Venezuela and beyond. These researchers investigated the pollution levels in water and sediments along the coastal areas where the largest Venezuelan oil refineries conduct their operations. The samples from these areas had consistently higher concentrations of organic compounds and heavy metals in water and sediments compared to other areas which do not have such operations taking place. The results from this study can help show the importance of improving environmental monitoring programs. The activities of these oil refinery plants are having adverse effects on the marine ecosystems because of continuously being exposed to myriad disturbances (Croquer et al. 2016). Chemical contaminants, including trace metals and hydrocarbons, are the ones having greatest impacts on marine ecosystems (Venturini et al. 2008). Oil refineries are introducing between 45,000 to 180,000 metric tons/year of toxic xenobiotics (sulfur/ammonium compounds and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) into the environment (GESAMP 2007). Reactions of metals in the air lead to very harmful effects to people’s health. These reactions have negative effects on every organism. The impact of these effects is reliant on factors such as proximity to other sources of pollution, the discharged volume, and chemical characteristics. Venezuela has the largest discharge of effluent into the marine environment in the world with more than 6,541 metric tons of oil waste per year (GESAMP 2007). Venezuela has the largest oil refineries in the world which are all located along the Caribbean coast. These refineries include Amuay, Cardon, and Bajo Grande. Combined, these oil refineries have the highest oil processing capacity in the globe. As a result of concerns highlighted, the Venezuela’s Ministry of Environment should establish long-term monitoring programs to understand the magnitude of oil refinery activities better. These programs should be focused on helping control the discharges of effluent and spill events. As observed earlier, these regulations are outdated, and the Ministry of Environment does not have an adequate number of employees who have the technical expertise to implement the legally required EIAs. The present paper supports the findings of the previous report which suggested that there should be a complete overhaul of Venezuela’s policy framework to manage environmental impacts in the country adequately. References ARA, 2011. Aportes para un diagnóstico de la problemática ambiental de Venezuela, May 2011. Assuncao, J. 2014. Environmental Effects of Toxic Materials from Oil and Gas Combustion. Available at https://www.eolss.net/Sample-Chapters/C09/E4-23-02-02.pdf Croquer, A., Bone, D., Bastidas, C., Ramos, R. and Garcia, E. 2016. Monitoring coastal pollution associated with the largest oil refinery complex of Venezuela. PeerJ 4:e2171; DOI 10.7717/peerj.2171 Gallegos, R. 2016. Crude Nation: How Oil Riches Ruined Venezuela. Nebraska: Nebraska Press. GESAMP. 2007. Estimates of oil entering the marine environment from sea-based activities. Reports and Studies GESAMP No. 75. London: International Maritime Organization. Monaldi, F. 2015. The Impact of the Decline in Oil Prices on the Economics, Politics and Oil Industry of Venezuela. Center on Global Energy Policy. Available at http://energypolicy.columbia.edu/sites/default/files/energy/Impact%20of%20the%20Decline%20in%20Oil%20Prices%20on%20Venezuela_September%202015.pdf Romero, A. 1996. The Environmental Impact of Leaded Gasoline in Venezuela. Journal of Environment 7 Development, Vol. 5, No. 4, pp. 434-438. Venturini N, Muniz P, Bı´cego MC, Martins CC, Tommasi LR. 2008. Petroleum contamination impact on macrobenthic communities under the influence of an oil refinery: integrating chemical and biological multivariate data. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 78(3):457–467 Walker, D. 2013. Fuels and the Environment. London: Evans Brothers Read More