alilld the 






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73

 

1

Cover: Sedco I, th
em -eubmers1bte drl/hng pt ttorm
Imperial ond norn r comp ny re using In 1oint
e:xptorst,on pror;r m on tfl At/ ntlc co ta Gr nd B nils
Left Imp rl I 01/ s
proce s,nr; plant t Oulrk Cre ,
Alla c n remo
240 ton at sullur from O m1/fton cub c
1 t at nstur I g per d y
Righr A s mp/ al w ter I tested from lmporlot a
$400,000 blochernlca/ lagoon t Winnipeg rot,nery Wot
water Is treated In tho lagoon before being d1schar ec1 Into
nearby Red River

u,

~ Pollution is many things It i dirty w ter and
a littered b ach. It is the d1sapp ranc of fish from
a creek or st roam. It is ar- pllllmg noise, no ious
fumes or offensive smoll 111 th d ·ruct on of
natural spoclos and dovostot1on of th land around
us. Pollution is a health problem. an conom1c
problem, an turul r sourc probl m and n esthet,c
problem all rolled Into one. In um, 11could be
described as 'tho untavorabto alt r tion of our surroundings, wholly or I rgely s o by-product of man'
actions'. And It has become obv1ou that w mus all
fight pollution if we ro to continu living on thl
earth .
It is not a new fight. Th bottle gain I s It In
streams. for example, began 8.000 y r go In
Mesopotamia where lrrrg lion w mv nt d London
in 1660 was de cribed by the A stor lion di rlst John
Evelyn ash ving 'her stately he d In clowd o
smoak and sulphur' . A century ago Montr I rs nd
Torontonians suffered sore ey s from the dust that
d
rose from the unpaved streets . The str Is are p
today but pollution Is still with us.
In general, pollution is the direct resull of more
people living in bigger cities. consuming more goods
and services and using more energy to main aln a
high standard of living. With three billion people on
earth, man cannot help but contaminate the environment to some extent. No matter what he does. there
Is always something left over as waste. Laws can be
made to protect the environment, but governments
realize that ii is impossible to eliminate waste
entirely. Even if all industries were shut down, human
wastes would slill be a major environmental problem.
Accordingly, government regulations set limits on
the amounts ot contaminants that may be discharged
Into air and water But such regulations and their
enforcement are fairly recent developments. Once
there was little, if any, public concern and legislation
In this regard.
Yet Imperial Oil's anti-pollution acllvaties go back
many years. Separators to remove oil from wastes

 Oil
and
lhcEnv
iro1111crll

WATER
A1•.
~
W 1l11ttlflVIH w11111<1llt Altlir11Jf11
1 tt rnrl'/ tm
un v 11ly rl l trl111n11d,11111111
I• 11111Jt 1u1dr,r th,,
sur f'lc o f th< 1 11tlh, 1111111111,
11111111pt11,r1,
- n rnu, h
wator w, th11tuWII' rrallll1111•,
111y1,11r rui<i, ft I r,o, '
slbl o th n l 1111 wrt11Jry1111tl' ,,d r,ir y1,11r111t '111th
WfJ"'
tho smn o w11h r tt,1111·.ind• 1JI tl,111, rfJ<,y<,11,<J
,md
th o u und o f y, 1111 t1,r11ov1,d 111111
Cl1,,ipr,trn u ,r:rJIn
ho rs.
Th o p rrm twll · 11pply of w11t11r
,,xi t b1Jtrw .r,of
natu ro' cyc lu. Wn trit h tr,k,m Irr 11ri<J
qlvrm out t1y •JII
pl ant WHl llnl rnral•, u1rryl11q ww1t1, rr1r1t1m;Jh
wrth it.
Th en, i n 111
0 11ral11t111
c.011t1,1J
of ,,vorrh, <m<iof two
thin gs hurmo n .:
It ovuporntm Into tho 1t11111J'
plum, to form clouds.
Th o wa ·to· it c.ontnlll' IH lor<J ovHpornllon arc loft on
th e ea rth or 011tor th,, 11ttr1<J',pl11iro
. rho water roturns
to ea rth a fo(J, rnln, •,l1Jotor• now, or
It sink s Int o tho qro1111cl,taklrrq It~ wastos with it.
Sandy so il s fll tor rnJt pm! c,f tllo ww1tw, and when the
wat e r roac ho fl nt ro:un, lnko or oco,rn It Is cleansed
by th e ac ti on o f oxy 1011, bact1Jtlu, sunllqht and
dilution .
Tho con so rvatlo 11of w11tor by rwturo's own renewal
proc ess mako llfo po•;•,lblo. It Is only when man
ups ets thi s balanco that ho must correct it by other
mean s.
Wate r can accommodate 1.1cortain amount of waste
but wh en It bocomos ovorlowJod, fish, plants and
other des ir abl e wil d llfo rrwy bo killed or driven away;
swimming and othor rocroatlonal activities become
unsafe or unpl easant; and tho water's taste , color
and smell aro o ffo nsivo.
And wh at is 'w aste'? Tho C11nadaWater Act of 1970
define s It as 'a ny-s ubstance that, if added to any
waters , would deg rade or a lter or form part of a
proces'S of degr adati o n or alteration of the quality ?f
those water s to an extor:it that is detrimental to their
use by man or by any an ima l, fish or plant that is
useful to man .. .'
The major sour ces o f w ater pollution are cities,
industri es and f a rms.
The waste from citi es and towns includes sewage
from houses and oth er so urces discharged into the
water through sew er sy stems. In major cities, it may
also include large quantit ies of salt, spread on the
streets during th e winter to melt snow.
Industrial wastes may includ e acids, alkalis, sulfur
compounds, hydrocarbons , ot her chemicals, and
suspended solids.
Agricultural pollution Inc lud es animal wastes, ~,lti
phosphates, nitrates , pesticid es and other chemica s
used in farming.
I

Top : An oil-water separator at an Imperial Oil refinery
din
treats water before returnin g it to it s source
Left : Pipe //nos crossing riv ers or harbors are "'!rapdemage
8
thick concrete and burl ed to prot ect them against

 Wntor cnn olso be polluted by changing its temperntur . This 'thermal' pollution happens when heated
wntor Is roturnod to its source, resulting in a rise in
t rnpor turo that may harm marine plants and
crouturos.
Tho oil industry uses or encounters water in all of
Its oporntions. Millions of gallons are used daily in
roflnlnq A growing part of oil exploration work is
cnrrlod out off the shores of oceans and seas. When
oil Is discovered and brought to the surface from
doop underground, water often comes up with it.
Lorge volumes of crude oil and manufactured products oro moved in ships. Oil and product pipe lines
of ton cross bodies of water.
Exploration and Production
One of tho more widely employed techniques in the
search for oil uses explosives set off in surface holes
to bounce energy waves off underground rock formations. The echoes of these shock waves, translated
Into a pattern on paper, help oilmen chart what may
be burled deep in the earth. On land dynamite makes
the explosions. At sea, gas exploders are usually
used. One type employs a mixture of oxygen and
propane, ignited by a spar k pl ug in a rubber sleeve.
The resulting 'pop' inf lates the sleeve like an instant
balloon. The sudden expansion is sharp enough to
give a reading but does not harm f ish or other marine
creatures, and the burned gases escape to the surface through a snor kel, thus keep ing th e water clean.
The gas exploder was develo ped by Esso.
In very shall ow w ate rs w ith thick layers of energyabsorbing ooze on the bottom this tech nique is not
effective. So, in some part s of the world (and on an
experimenta l basis in the Arctic), the oilme n drill
holes in the ocean floor , and set off explos ions inside
them as the y do on land .
When the explo rers have located an area in which
oil is like ly to be found , they drill to find if it is there.
In ocea n operations , drilling is done either fro m
specially-b uilt ships or from giant platforms. In all
cases, utmost care is taken to protect the waters.
Rigs are equipped with 'blow -out preventers ' to stop
fluids in the pipe from escaping into the water .
Other precautions are taken, too . The drilling bit

Above: This tower conserves wator by cooling Hntl
recirculating It. It can handle 30,000 gnllon s n minute
Below: lmperla/'s Redwater, Alta . fortl!ILOr pl1111t
f, l111ve
more than $4 ml/I/on In pollutlon control fncllltlo a

itself never even touches the water . r llo drllllnq t11kn
place within a steel sleeve that runs from 1110pl11tlrrn11
to deep beneath the ocean floor . On a ty11lcnloff
shore drilling rig garbage from the qalloy, on11y
washwater and other wastes are takon from tho rln
and disposed of ashore.

 . .
red the same precauWhen an oil field is d1scov; sea the well must not
tions appl}'. Whe her on ~~n r .~~sh' 'special devices
0
be permitted t_o'bi1,°"' ~ t:ms are designed to shut
in wells
pipe _,nesy\ident occurs. In addition
down the oil tlo . if ani8cperial trains its crews in well
to these prec!2ut1onsltho:ghmost drillers will never
control practices. a
see an uncontrolled 'ell.
th
To make sure that the special dritlinQ mud, or e
oil when it is produced. do not co~taminate.the
environment. o• I ells are lined w1~hsteel pipe. The
salty water calleo brine that somet1ri:esc?n:ies to the
surface with crude oil is returned to •!s ongm~I
underground site or to some ?ther bnne-beanng
formation. so it \\on't contaminate surface water or
sweet water.
.
.
Oil companies are concerned about oil pollution of
the oceans. The U.S.Coast Guard has estimated th~
amount of oil pollution entering the world's oce~ns in
1971 at 4.9 million metric tons (other reports, using
different criteria. arrive at different estimates). Ne~rly
2 5 million tons came from industrial and automotive
....;asteoils that are discharged on land and end up in
the sea. Perhaps 100.000 tons originated from offshore operations. Just under 2.4 million tons originated from accidents and normal operations of the
maritime industry.
In general. reports on the amounts of oil entering
the oceans from sources in the maritime industry
suggest that about a third of it comes from nontanker ressels 1ike ocean liners and cargo steamers.
Tankers. 'lo· e'er. are still the single main source
and do contribute substantially even though most oil
companies str'. e to keep pollution to an absolute
mi'limulT'. Great care is taken to avoid spills during
leading and unloading. The officers and crews of
Esso tankers are thoroughly schooled in pollution
avoidance and control procedures. In some ports,
specia ., trained retired tanker captains and chief
engineers are hired to board chartered ships in port
to ensure ttiat pollution control measures are

an?

followed.
The bigge~t source of tanker sea polluti
from ballasting and tank cleaning operar on results
oily discharges from a single ship may ~ons.Such
the total from all tankers can be significa~ ;ma11,but
discharges occur on the high seas away fr· hese
waters except in isolated cases where av orn coastal
blatantly disregards the marine industry'se~sel
code, or national or international law. Pro;r:an seas
been made by the tanker industry in reducin ss ~as
source of offshore sea pollution and work cogt's
to find ways to further reduce it.
n inues
The oily discharges from tanker operation O · .
ate in the need for a tanker that has discharg:~gt
oil cargo to re-fill some of her tanks with water er
she wi II be sea-worthy for her voyage to the ne:to
port. Inevitably, much of this ballast water mixes ·t
oil residue from the last load. Before the tanker c:' h
take on a new oil cargo her water ballast must be n
discharged. Since this is generally done into the
coastal waters of her next loading port, the ballast
water must be clean so as to avoid polluting the
environmentally sensitive tidal zone. Therefore while
at sea the tanker must dispose of the ballast w~ter
that was loaded into uncleaned cargo tanks; she
must also wash other tanks to receive sea water that
will remain clean for discharge in a port area.
The tanker industry has developed operating procedures to separate oily residues from the water ballast
loaded in uncleaned tanks and from the tank
washings. The water is then carefully decanted into
the seas and the oily residue retained on board in a
slops tank. Where reception and treatment facilities
are available at loading ports the oily slops are
discharged ashore. In most cases, particularly in the

As part of lmperial's oil spill containment and clean-up
program, Edmonton refinery employees practise putting a
boom in place on the North Saskatchewan River

 high-volume crude trade, the slops are retained on
board and fresh crude oil cargo is loaded on top of
the slops. In this manner most of the residue from
the previous cargo is reclaimed and not discha rged
into the seas. This mode of operation is called 'loadon-top'. Imperial and the other major oi l co mpanies
have followed it in their own ocean tank ers since
1964 and urge its adoption by all ocean tankers
engaged in carriage of persistent oils . About 75 per
cent of the world tanker fleet follows this proc edure ,
and the 25 per cent that don't use it accou nt for about
70 per cent of the sea pollution from this operational
source. Improved load-on-top procedures - carefully
monitored, strictly enforced and universally applied could dramatically reduce pollution of the high seas.
This is an attainable goal and the industry is working
to achieve it.
To make sure its cargoes are carried safely and
with due regard for environmental protection , tankers
to be chartered by Essa must submit to pre-char ter
inspection or provide past performance records for
screening - sometimes both. When Essa charters a
tanker a clause in the contract obliges the vessel to
follow the company 's pollution-avoidance guidelines
including the load-on-top technique . Where these
special procedures and the retention of slops add to
costs, the company accepts them.
lmperial's lake and coastal tankers discharge all
oily ballast into shore facilities and no ballast is discharged into inland or coastal waters within 100
miles of shore.
All of the company's lake, coastal and ocean
tankers are equipped to handle minor oil spills.
However, despite all the precautions, accidents
sometimes occur. To minimize damage from them,
Imperial has organized clean-up teams at all its
major operating points, and has compiled a series of
detailed manuals so that every man knows exactly
what to do in case of an accident. Imperial also
coordinates its clean-up capabilities with other oil
companies and local authorities. More than 80 oil spill-cooperatives now exist across Canada , and they
can pool manpower, equipment, materials and knowledge for any emergency, quickly and efficiently.
The laws in some places do not make shipowners
sufficiently liable for damages to people affected by
tanker accidents, or even for clean-up costs. In order
to protect the public in those areas until responsive
International laws are ratified, a large number of
petroleum companies and private tanker owners have

Above : Tankers at th e dock of the /rr,per;a, O refinery at
Montre al East, Que. Oily ballast is d,scharged motanks at
the ri ver's edge
Below : Imper ial refineri es run conFf'ua/ tests on the qua'•ty
of wate r they re turn to rivers and /al,-es. Here researchers
check pur i ty of impounded bas, n .'later at ''on rea East
ref inery

entered into voluntary agreemerts to erisure that
damaged parties are reasonably and promotly
reimbursed or compensated. \ilore t ar 95 per ce'"'t
of the world 's tanker fleet and 80 per ce1t of 1t"teoi1
moving in internationa' trade are co erect b'f rese
voluntary agreements.
Pipe Lines
Most Canadian refineries receive their crLde 0·1 by
pipe line. In addition, smaller lines take products

5

 from the refineries to major terminals. Pipe l_i~es~re
built to strict government and industry spec1f1cat1ons
and are regularly monitored so that if a leak occurs
the line may be shut down, or if some surface construction job should venture too near, the construction gang is duly warned and watche:J. Pipe line
builders take special care in putting a line across a
river or harbor where it is vulnerable to accidental
damage from ~hipping. On such water crossings the
line is wrapped in thick concrete and buried in a
trench below the river or harbor bed, so deep that
even a dragged anchor should not damage it.
Refineries

In spite of the tremendous volumes of products they
make, oil refineries are not major sources of water
pollution. One reason is that oil refining is done in a
system that is essentially closed. During processing,
the crude oil and the products made from it are
confined inside pipes and towers. And in comparison
with many other industries, very little of the materials
used ever becomes waste. Another reason is good
housekeeping; oil products can be dangerous if they
ar~ ha~dled improperly, and the people who work in
refineries handle them with care.
Large amounts of water are used in refining, but

Above: University of Cal
;xper~ments on biodegra~/J1ftesear~h.ers conduct
"!Penal helped pay for th.
Y of oil ,n Arctic condit'
Right: Huge 'bl
is research
ions.
ff
ow-out preve t '
o shore drilling to protect thn ers are installed during
case of sudden pressure sur;e~ceans from pollution in

6

these amounts are steadily bei
Imperial refineries the water is :~r~educed. At
re-used. At lmperial's Sarnia Ian cool_edanct
tower can cool 30,000 galloniof
t, for instance
·
1·
watera .
,one
uc
air
coo
ing
equipment
is
furth
minute.
S h
demand for water.
er reducing the
Water used in refining is eventu 11
source, but it is treated before it i! r~l~eturnedto its
degree of treatment depends on th
ased. The
tamination. In some cases it need e extent of con
.
.
sonly pr'1
•
~ary
treatm_ent. removal of 011and solids in
or basins where the solids sink to th bsetthngponds
water is then skimmed to remove ~ otto~ . The
; the
skimmed oil goes back to the refi~~ ~ce 011
sing and the solids are burned or ta? or reprocesdisposal area.
en to a waste
~ome highly concentrated refinery w t
acids , spent caustics and water that . as es - such as
with sulfides, ammonia and phenols _is contaminated
and special treatment. In one such tre~t~ separate
contaminated water passes through , ent the
stripper' which removes the ammoni!
w~ter
The residue. goes into biological oxidatio~ ~ul!ides.
where specially-bred bacteria literally
t nits
phenol compounds.
ea up the

:~ur

 Oil
and
theEnvironment

AIR

~dG The o?d~ ~re you 'll never ~reathe pure air.

pureair is an mv1s1ble, odorl ess mixture of gases. It
containsabout 78 per cent nit roge n and 21 per cent
oxygen. The remaining one per cent is mostly carbon
dioxide and argon with traces of neon, helium, xenon,
hydrogen, methane, krypton and varyi ng amounts of
watervapor. Strictly speaking , air becomes polluted
whenever anything is added to this mixt ure.
Air pollution is a question of degr ee, depending on
whether the contaminants are suffici ent to endanger
health, to damage plants or anim als, or to impair
visibility in the case of transportation . On the other
hand, air need not be contaminated , in t he health
hazard sense, to be offensive: if it smell s bad, that's a
form of pollution.
To scientists , air impurities are generally classified
as gases and aerosols. Some of the gases are:
- Nitrogen oxides, formed when anything is burned.
Their commonest forms are nitrogen diox ide and
nitric oxide. When nitrogen dioxide reacts with other
gases in sunlight it can damage vegetation , cause
sore eyes and reduce visibility.
- Sulfur oxides, which occur mainly in the burning of
coal and oil. The commonest form is sulfur dioxide, a
colorless gas that can irritate the lungs. During smog,
some of this may change to sulfur trioxide and
sulfuric acid mist, which are more irritating than
sulfur dioxide.
- Carbon monoxide, formed when any carbon-beari ng
material (wood, charcoal, paper, coal, oil, gas)
doesn't burn completely. It is particularly dangerous
in closed spaces.
- Hydrocarbons, which are hydrogen and carbon in
chemical combination. Oil and natural gas are mixtures of hydrocarbons.
-Aldehydes, particularly formaldehyde, which enter
the atmosphere from incinerator smoke, from industrial stacks, and from automobile and diesel exhausts.
Aerosols are suspensions of fine solid or liquid
particles in the air, some so small you can't see them.
They include smoke, fumes, dusts and mists .
. The oil industry encounters and combats air pollution in two major areas of its operations: in manufacturing, which can create dust smoke and smells;
and in the use of petroleum products - smoke and
gases result when fuels are burned to produce steam
for power generation or industrial use, to heat
b~i)dings and operate vehicles and machinery. Th_e
oil industry also must cope with the hydrogen sulfide
removed from crude oil and natural gas. Where the
amounts justify it, the sulfur can be removed and
~sed. ~here it is present in small amounts it may be
urned if the resulting emissions are kept below
permissible levels.
thOne of the first things you notice in a refinery is
t e absence of visible oil - just miles of pipe, huge
owers and
almost no smoke,

Top: An operator examines a sample of.s~Jfurpr~duced
from the waste sulfide streams at /mpenal s Winnipeg

s ·

refinery
· 0 ·1•
Bottom: A closed-circuit TV system at /mpenal , s arnta
refinery permits the operators to keep a close control on
the performance of flares. Also, cameras a~toma.t/cally
record the flare stacks' operation at 15-minute intervals

des ite the tall stacks. Emergency gas flares, for .
exa~ple , are almost always of the smok?l?ss t¥pe,.;~
which stea m is injected from nozzles, mixing air w1
the escaping gas to burn it completely.

 "ll-ya wu-



- 

 

hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide exhaust em·1s
s1ons.
-

r

, du t' are highly volatile. They

.,. ti , hi h m ans that during storage
...t
"·

:;~ Hit.
• t

: I 1

ti
t

f large and expensive losses.

· 1p rated products can make

,:: h

t • Many Imperial refineries
lution to both problems: all large
lding volatile products will have
11 d with inflatable synthetic rubber
Ii huge inner tubes. They virtually
r 1tl n of the tanks' contents.
, r fineries make - heavy fuel oils,
Is and automobile gasoline among
, tial sources of air pollution. Heavy
i factories. thermal generating plants,
apartment buildings and offices,
, as three per cent sulfur. Government
Canada are starting to call for reducfur content of heavy fuels burned in
an areas.
e amount of sulfur in fuel oil is very
• E. eriments are under way to try to solve
· . other ways at lower cost. One of these
e-gas desulfurization, in which chemical
re
es the sulfur dioxide before it
e at osphere. An Imperial Oil affiliate,
esearc and Engineering, has been carrying
a
research program of this kind, in can' t several electric power companies in
a a a d t e United States.
g t e sulfur content of home heating fuel is
cities as Toronto and Montreal have estabed c •rols on it, too.

•h

Automobile
e automobile engine turns gasoline into
o drive the car, it isn't totally efficient. It
does
completely bum the fuel, with the result that
drocarbons, carbon monoxide and a variety of
o r c emical compounds go into the atmosphere.
There are three sources of emissions from an
a omobile that is not fitted with pollution controls.
So e 15 per cent of the emissions come from the
fuel a k and from carburetor evaporation. Another
20 per cent originate in the crankcase. The rest,
along with carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and
lead compounds come from the exhaust.
Automobile ma~ufacturers have made considerable
Pl"OQressin design changes to control these emis:
ai?ns.Thecar of 1970, properly equipped and 1!1amtamed, gave off 70 per cent less carbon monoxide
and hydrocarbons than the 1960 car.
But the aim for the middle-to-late 1970s - to meet
9 XJ>ected
government regulations - is an essent!ally
pollution-free car. Automobile companies and oil
companies are working toward this. Esso Research
llnd Engineering, for example, has developed a
catalytic reactor which in tests has achieved 85 per
cent control of nitrogen oxides and 90 per cent for

.The task poses some challenging problems. One
kind of control under consideration is a thermal
reactor that would almost totally burn up exhaust
gases at. very high temperatures. But this in turn calls
fo~ special heat-resistant metals . A catalytic reactor
usin~ a catalyst to nullify the pollutants, is more
'
feasible: But tetraethyl lead, which is currently added
to gasoline to boost octane ratings, would considerably sho.rten the life and effectiveness of the catalyst.
The~~ 1sno medical evidence that lead - in the
~uant1t1esfound in the North American atmosphere 1s~ health haz~rd. (Lead as once found in paint, and
which small children sometimes licked from their
toys, was another matter: it was sometimes found in
lethal quantities.) Lead is the most economic means
of giving gasoline the boost that modern cars
demand.
However, in the early 1970s the oil refiners were
faced with the necessity of developing more acceptable gasoline with little or no lead, so that manufacturers' control devices would operate properly . And
units to produce high-octane gasolines without lead
can cost as much as $25 million each. Aside from
this high expense in facilities to make high-octane
gasoline without lead, more crude oil is required to
make the same amount of fuel. Inevitably, some of
this extra cost will show up in the gasoline prices that
motorists will have to pay as part of the price of
clean air.

Opposite page: Water cooling towers (foreground) and
smokeless flare stacks are two of the many devices used by
refineries to help protect the environment
Below: Monitoring stations set up by Imperial maintain a
constant check on air quality at the company's Samia
refinery. Here a member of the staff studies data recorded
by the monitors

 OilandtheEnvironment

NOISE
~~

Acoustics experts, reporting to the International Standards Organization in Geneva, said that
if noise continues to rise at the present rate- about
one decibel a year - everyone living in a city could be
deaf by the year 2000. Of all the pollutants around us,
noise has had the least attention. Yet it is realized
now that 'ordinary' everyday noise, over a sustained
period, can in some cases impair hearing and erode
health in other ways.
For years industry has recognized the noise
problem in factories and has taken steps to protect
workers from it. Meanwhile, though, the sound level

Imperial Oil industrial hygienist uses sophisticated
equipment to measure noise levels at Sarnia refinery

has been rising around all of us in daily life: heavy
transports, superson!c aircraft, staccato motorbikes
and snow vehicles, shrill motor boats, loud music,
rumbling farm machinery, pneumatic drills and all
the other clatter of contemporary life . The oil industry
is not a leading offender but it is a noise contributor
all the same, and noise is now one of its anti-pollution
targets.
Perhaps the noisiest part of the oil industry is the
refinery with its humming, whistling, rumbling,
hissing sounds. Part of the problem, in terms of
environment, is the same problem faced by airports:
originally, the place was built in a relatively unpopulated area; now, population has closed in
around it. So a partial solution to industrial noise until some future century when technology enables a
factory or refinery to do its job in total silence - is
proper zoning, with perhaps a buffer zone of light
industry or greenbelt between heavy industry and
residential areas.
Refiners, nevertheless, must and do keep the noise
down, with mufflers on exhaust stacks and vents;
acoustically-lined housing on pumps, motors and
burners; and, in some locations, sound-deadening
walls surrounding noisy units. Sometimes one kind of
pollution control inadvertently leads to another kind
of pollution. You can burn waste gases completely,
without a trace of smoke if you inject steam into the
flame. But as the steam content increases, so does
the noise level. It is possible to operate a smokeless
flare with a minimum of noise, but it takes constant
supervision. Consequently, refinery operators monitor the flares to ensure they stay smokeless while
operating as quietly as possible. Some refineries use
closed-circuit television for this purpose.
During the planning of lmperial's Strathcona
refinery in Alberta, the sound level of all potential
noises was programmed into a computer and translated into decibels. This information helps to predict
the possible noise level of the new plant.
Imperial refineries frequently measure the noise
around them, but even so, things sometimes go
wrong. In 1971, residents around lmperial's Regina
refinery were bothered by a loud noise that was
aggravated by easterly winds. The problem was
traced to a manufacturing flaw in a brand-new
muffler on the exhaust stack of the catalytic cracking
unit. A new muffler went up and, throughout the
incident, all local residents were kept informed of
the cause and the cure in personal letters from the
refinery manager.
There are, of course, other noise hazards in the oil
industry. Exploration sounds that could disturb
northern wildlife will be discussed in this booklet's
section on the Arctic. Some Esso car washes have
reported that the sound of dryer fans is annoying to
neighbours and has to be muffled. The pumps on fuel
delivery trucks set up a rumble that sometimes makes
windows rattle. So far complaints have been negligible but Imperial has asked equipment suppliers to
start making pumps that will lower the noise level.
As yet, however, there are few laws regulating
noise and even fewer facilities to measure abuses
accurately enough to permit regulations to be written
and enforced. Such laws and facilities will come. In
the meantime, Imperial will conduct its operations in
ways that will not only meet but may improve upon
existing or future requirements.

 oaand
theEnvironmen

f,otlng upon In tho Arctic, . No r,rm of Gun1!du le
J?ttln J rnow ro o11rc;t1IHl<mllc,t, lrorn 1hr,p:irllclpHtlng
<.,<,mr>;inl,,
, wi<l from lrnpc,rlal lr1pMllcul11r. For
he Arcli,, I unlqur' frJlatlv1Jlyunknown llfl<J ,ur
rm inqly ,u .u,r,,tlbl<, t<1cl,mwqo. It trtu. t hr, trm1tod
Nlth unr.omrnr,n cum.
In 1910 lmporll1l lrJd In tho forrna1lori of thn Arctic
P,,troloum Oprmttor A; ,ot;i;1tlon, u qroup crr,atod to
.pon• or ro. ,;orc,h proj<JCt ulmocJ:it eolvlr1uunvfronmonU1I Md op<m.1tlont:1I
problorn In th1JNortt,. The
.,amo YNir, lmporlnl co- pon1 orod a tttudy of bird life
m th<;Mackon;do d<Jlta,which holp,Jd tho Garwdlan
Wildlife Sorvlco ostabllsh rnlqrntory pattorns. This
information wlll prJrmlt tho oil compnnlo to plan
thr,lr OpfJratlon In ways and plncoe thnt will croate
thfJ luast dlsturbanco to bl re.la.Within tho company,
lmporlal has held an Arctic workHhop for the instruction of its northern seismic and drllllng workers.
Imperial has boon explorlng tho North, off and on,
since the early part of this century. It mado the first
oil discovery In the region ln 1920 at Norman Wells,
tl.W.T., 90 miles south of the Arctic Circle. An

t'

the
ARCTIC
Thonol ,o of a hr~llu,ptbr dr,i1Jrt'.J:.Iii"; Ntld
that nost in lurgr, nurnb<)r',alr;r:g H,c, i1cir.,j,r;nzie
gooson Canada' Arctic. P, lor g a·..4,j rnlnut,;,
deltaI hoppm's arriv,11,th,.,gr,v.,r::1
·.~n '; I -:,
0
bof0[ na~dfleo from their ntJfJt'. II~ itr; tt •;'f'rn a 11ay
com~~o nosts,such predator-sa~ fo1~-.. :.ind'J .111:.
steal the ,3gg or oat thq :r>ur,~.
P.r.,•,uit
: r.111
m Y nlos have restrJct,,d th<;tr no, ~·m~hng
~~~J~es In main no ting area<; during the MiJ-June
nestingseason.
.
ThisIs only one of many facts th~ oil industr:t ls
AJ:•

~~

trO:

EvenIn winter special vehlcff:1,1rmd t0chnlqUG'. tJfFJr0qulred to protect the fro20n tundra

 pip ll11rtbw111ild ll1111r1r,11n11r1nd11, 11lnll•1t11,1Y,t.t p
1111:1
111111,1,111
I u:il r,,1111
111,1lll11u l111pr rlnl nr,tJ, '"' r , In fJ
11it1IIbllldY 1,f 1tl11r11111,1 ,111qt111,ll 11t111111,, I lr1rlh,
1tjlt1lril11tl rl j.1ql lrlt 11111111[
,!fl 1111
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1111l111Wr111,1ll 1•l11r1111111
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, 11 1 t11 1 JJ In• 111:i
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fllld l11,1•11r,11!11rs11I
with typ, .,r rib,,,, r tr1unrJ
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1,r11ll111tll111tlltr11pl111rl , ltr111lrll1ii pip, llrir hHV<J
l1m111l,11lll ltluli ,,,,,,11uli r,11ti,, n11lrr1nl 11 1w:111unrfor,
11tlll1tl 111111111
11 llt11Illiny I rill l1r r rt lly r lltr1br d
tVtll 111,111111vr1111,111I
,,r, t1tll11111
r11,1tll1d IJ,,tt, r.lrirJ I
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11 111 p,1111111i,11
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lt1t1 tt 1111111111
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ui •11v11I1111hip 11r
11111111111lr11
wl!l1CJ11I
fir• :,r.lny lh<J • ur
tw ti Vt• 11tlttlln11 Wl11t,11f!Htd· 1 '""'"'
llnrJ th• :iir· lrtpl,y 1111
lilyh lilnrllnq 1,,chntr~IJ'J.
lP di Ill ll,1 111,11111111
111111
till1111ld11d
nntc 111111c1,,vr,1, rJ to how,ing
111rl 1111111111ll,111cl1111I
p1C1'1lc111 111 llvlny In lh,, llrJrlh.
( 1111111
1 lltn 111111111
wllltutrl lt,ttrnl11q lho •Jnvirrmrn•Jnl
I 11111nltj,11 tlvt, 111111111
11 I· 11i Id, t,m,, 111./\II of the
It ti II !'11 l· 111.dd11
I Ill l!l)lltlllf/11'
1,r,nlrlbutirm 1o
111111' PVtll 1ll 111tcltI l1111dl1HJol lltfl tJorllr
11111
dll1111111111
of lltc 11ll l11dll' lry , w, of riny lndu 1ry
tut! 1y,I ltnw In p1rnlt1cc 1111qood· lh:il mo• I P':Ople
w 1111,11 1 prlc1 ll111y c 1111111fotd,without rJrJgradrng
tlto u11vl11,11111C111l.
WIiy, lll l t x 1111plc,, l1011ld oll c,otnp:irilr.,• oven
l>otlto1 lo, xplott lit, /\n.tli , m 1111• cJw wtwn 1hore
I 1111plt11>1111>11111 l1111nodlr11,11111,r,,In v,nvonlional
1t I lli Vt 'l 11,1: 111°.1
, · 001Hr IIH1tl trHJ'I p,,oplo r<,alize
11u1dI wlll 111,d 1t10: n 11cldlllon,1l ttJ•,1JrV%.OIi and
n l l11rti q 1 : 11pply w, l11c
,ro11•,lnqnrnount of our
l 111,qy 111
t d:
111C 11111d11,
otrHJ 10 por cent and it
t 1k1 11111,
y y1 .,, • lo ll11tfand dovolop now re erves.
' > tlu llll 1 :uc,h mw I co111ln1ww long as Canadi 111
• tH I ti oil le" homo ltoalin!J, fJH' olino for auton,obllt i, 111<1pt1l1cwl111nlc,lll',
for lho thou ands of
lltt r ol>lt cl• ol out clnlly llvm, . Plant must be built
11i t xpwHh d lo m1111ulr1cturo
tho products. And the
• ( 1tt. '1 lor l>t 111, 111111
pollt1l1on rnoa· mos must likewl, go 011. I hi 1 I wily lrnporlal maintains a full-time
l µ 1tl111t
Ill of onvlronrnontnl protoctlon. It Is why, in
nddlt lo n lo nll tho 111111
pollution t chnlques described
In thl, boo k! t, tho company upports many private
r • nr hl 1 , Inv nluro· r· nglng from a study of the
ff cts of oil 011oco11nlob tor, to the breeding of
ml I obc. ll1 11inny lit rnlly oat up oil spill . For
Imp rl ,1
It Job n holplng to meet Canada's
rowlnA n c c1 for oi l n rgy and chemicals while
co nduc tin g ll op rnll on In way that help attain the
nvlr onm nl I qu ullty th t Canadians require.

n

,,r,,

On It own, nnd In con/11nctlon with othor companies,
Imp rl 11Oil Is ngng <ct In ros arch to protect the Arctic
I op loft: I xp rlmontul pip lino tosts tho off oct on Arctic
t rruln
7op rl{lht: A r flOMcllor t11dylng fi sh habitats measures
w11
t , cfopths In tho Mnckon7lo dolta
I ow r loft : Unlvorslty of Alborta rosoarcher studies tundra
, v n t 1tlon
Low r right: For ummor dr/11/ngtho pormafrost needs
prot ct/on. Hore rolrlg oratlon Is tr/od

12

j

  

 

 

 

 

 

If you would like copies of this publication or
information on other educational publications or
motion pictures available to schools in Canada,
write to the public affairs advisors, Imperial Oil
Limited, at the addresse.s listed below:
British Columbia
1281 West Georgia Street,
Vancouver 5, British Columbia
Prairies
Three McCauley Plaza,
10025 Jasper Avenue,
Edmonton, Alberta
T5J 1S6

500 Sixth Avenue S. W.,
Calgary, Alberta
T2P OS1
379 Broadway Avenue,
Winnipeg, Manitoba
R3C OT9
Ontario
1 Duncan Mill Road,
Don Mills, Ontario
Quebec
P.O. Box 310,
Montreal 101, Quebec
Atlantic Provinces
P.O. Box 220,
Halifax, Nova Scotia

An Imperial Oil Publication

Une edition fran<;aise de ce livret est disponible

BM 72

 ll.D

!information
lik e copies
.
1 you would on

of this u . .
motion .
other educar
P bilcat1on or
.
pictures av .
1onal publ'
.
wnte to the publ ' a, 1able to school . ,cations or
Limited at th
rc affairs adviso
sin Canada
'
e addresses listed ~s, Imperial Oil'
British Col
.
1281 W
umb1a
est Geor o
Vancouver 5 B _g_1a
Street,
.
' nt1sh Columbia

elow:

Prairies
Three
10025 McC
Ja auley Plaza
Edmonto~P~:venue,'
T5J s
o
erta
1 6

500 Sixth Avenu
Calgary, Albe t e S. W.,
T2P 0S1
ra
3~9 Broadway Av
Winnipeg M . enue,
R3C 0T9 , arntoba
Ontario
1 Duncan Mill R
Don Mills, Onta~~d,
Quebec
P.O. Box 310
Montreal 101 ,o Q uebec
Atlantic Prov?mces
PO
? ? Box 220
Halifax ' Nov~ Scotia

An Imperial Oil
.
Une edition f
Pu~hcation
ram;a,se de ce /,vret
.
est d'isponible

Cover: Sedco I, the semi-submersible drilling platform
Imperial and another company are using in a joint
exploration program on the Atlantic coast 's Grand Banks
Left: Imperial Oil's gas processing plant at Quirk Creek,
Alta. can remove 240 tons of sulfur from 90 million cubic
feet of natural gas per day
Right : A sample of water is tested from lmperial 's
$400,000 biochemical lagoon at Winnipeg refinery. Waste
water is treated in the lagoon before being discharged into
nearby Red River

~~

Pollution is many things. It is dirty water and
a littered beach. It is the disappearance of fish from
a creek or stream. It is ear-splitting noise, noxious
fumes or offensive smells. It is the destruction of
natural species and devastation of the land around
us. Pollution is a health problem, an economics
problem, a natural resource problem and an aesthetic
problem all rolled into one. In sum, it could be
described as 'the unfavorable alteration of our surroundings, wholly or largely as a by-product of man's
actions' . And it has become obvious that we must all
fight pollution if we are to continue living on this
earth.
It is not a new fight. The battle against silt in
streams, for example, began 8,000 years ago in
Mesopotamia where irrigation was invented. London
in 1660 was described by the Restoration diarist John
Evelyn as having 'her stately head in clowds of
smoak and sulphur ' . A century ago Montrealers and
Torontonians suffered sore eyes from the dust that
rose from the unpaved streets. The streets are paved
today but pollution is still with us.
In general, pollution is the direct result of more
people living in bigger cities, consuming more goods
and services and using more energy to maintain a
high standard of living. With three billion people on
earth, man cannot help but contaminate the environment to some extent. No matter what he does, there
is always something left over as waste. Laws can be
made to protect the environment, but governments
realize that it is impossible to eliminate waste
entirely. Even if all industries were shut down, human
wastes would still be a major environmental problem.
Accordingly, government regulations set limits on
the amounts of contaminants that may be discharged
into air and water . But such regulations and their
enforcement are fairly recent developments. Once
there was little, if any, public concern and legislation
in this regard.
Yet Imperial Oil 's anti-pollution activities go back
many years. Separators to remove oil from wastes

were built into lmperial's Dartmouth refinery in 1918.
Imperial technicians were studying water quality at
Sarnia in the 1920s. During the 1960s Imperial spent
more than $40 million on facilities that directly and
indirectly protect the environment. In the 1970s it will
spend at least $100 million more. As industry expands
to meet the needs of increased population, control
equipment becomes an even more important part of
the design of new plants. At lmperial 's new refinery
at Strathcona near Edmonton , for example, more
than $13 million will be spent on pollution control
facilities. Hundreds of millions more will be spent to
provide facilities to make fuels with little or no lead
content.
Imperial and others in the oil industry realize that
control of wastes is the most important way to
protect the environment. However, where people are
involved perfection is impossible, and there is always
the chance of accidents . Serious pollution incidents
have resulted from accidents in the oil business.
Therefore, while Imperial and the oil industry are
continually seeking ways to avoid accidents, they are
also working on improved methods of restoring the
environment if an accident happens .
Most major companies employ full-time environmental specialists, who spend their days making sure
company operations are not damaging to the
ecology. Imperial Oil and 11 other companies have
formed PACE (Petroleum Association for Conservation of the Canadian Environment), and are jointly
working to preserve the land , air and water wherever
they are touched by the oil industry. Imperial has
conducted a cross-Canada study course in environmental biology for its employees and has compiled
for them a glossary of environmental terms, from
'abiotic ' to 'zooplankton '.
This booklet concerns water, air and noise pollution. It describes the problems facing Imperial and
the oil and petrochemicals industry in the matter of
environmental protection, and reports what is being
done about those problems.

OilandtheEnvironment

WATER

~~

Water never wears out. Although it may be
unevenly distributed, there is - on or under the
surface of the earth, or in the atmosphere - as much
water as there was millions of years ago. It is possible that the water you used for your last bath was
the same water - thousands of times recycled and
thousands of years removed - that Cleopatra used in
hers.
The perpetual supply of water exists because of
nature's cycle. Water is taken in and given out by all
plants and animals, carrying waste materials with it.
Then, in the natural course of events, one of two
things happens:
It evaporates into the atmosphere to form clouds.
The wastes it contains before evaporation are left on
the earth or enter the atmosphere. The water returns
to earth as fog, rain, sleet or snow; or
It sinks into the ground, taking its wastes with it.
Sandy soils filter out part of the wastes and when the
water reaches a stream, lake or ocean it is cleansed
by the action of oxygen, bacteria, sunlight and
dilution.
The conservation of water by nature's own renewal
process makes life possible. It is only when man
upsets _thisbalance that he must correct it by other
means.
Water can accommodate a certain amount of waste
but when it becomes overloaded, fish, plants and
other desirable wildlife may be killed or driven away;
swimming and other recreational activities become
unsafe or unpleasant; and the water's taste, color
and smell are offensive.
And what is 'waste'? The Canada Water Act of 1970
defines it as 'any.substance that, if added to any
waters, would degrade or alter or form part of a
proces s of degradation or alteration of the quality of
those waters to an extel'lt that is detrimental to their
use by man or by any animal, fish or plant that is
useful to man .. .'
The major sources of water pollution are cities,
industries and farms.
The waste from cities and towns includes sewage
from houses and other sources discharged into the
water through sewer systems. In major cities, it may
also include large quantities of salt, spread on the
streets during the winter to melt snow.
Industrial wastes may include acids, alkalis, sulfur
compounds, hydrocarbons, other chemicals, and
suspended solids.
Agricultural pollution includes animal wastes, silt,
phosphates, nitrates, pesticides and other chemicals
used in farming.
1

Top: An oil-water separator at an Imperial Oil refinery
treats water before returning it to its source
Left: Pipe lines crossing rivers or harbors are wrapped in
thick concrete and buried to protect them against damage

i

Water can also be polluted by changing its temperature. This 'thermal' pollution happens when heated
water is returned to its source, resulting in a rise in
temperature that may harm marine plants and
creatures.
The oil industry uses or encounters water in all of
its operations. Millions of gallons are used daily in
refining. A growing part of oil exploration work is
carried out off the shores of oceans and seas. When
oil is discovered and brought to the surface from
deep underground, water often comes up with it.
Large volumes of crude oil and manufactured products are moved in ships. Oil and product pipe lines
often cross bodies of water.
Exploration and Production
One of the more widely employed techniques in the
search for oil uses explosives set off in surface holes
to bounce energy waves off underground rock formations. The echoes of these shock waves, translated
into a pattern on paper, help oilmen chart what may
be buried deep in the earth. On land dynamite makes
the explosions. At sea, gas exploders are usually
used. One type employs a mixture of oxygen and
propane, ignited by a spark plug in a rubber sleeve.
The resulting 'pop' inflates the sleeve like an instant
balloon. The sudden expansion is sharp enough to
give a reading but does not harm fish or other marine
creatures, and the burned gases escape to the surface through a snorkel, thus keeping the water clean.
The gas exploder was developed by Essa.
In very shallow waters with thick layers of energyabsorbing ooze on the bottom this technique is not
effective. So, in some parts of the world (and on an
experimental basis in the Arctic), the oilmen drill
holes in the ocean floor, and set off explosions inside
them as they do on land.
When the explorers have located an area in which
oil is likely to be found, they drill to find if it is there.
In ocean operations, drilling is done either from
specially-built ships or from giant platforms. In all
cases, utmost care is taken to protect the waters.
Rigs are equipped with 'blow-out preventers' to stop
fluids in the pipe from escaping into the water.
Other precautions are taken, too. The drilling bit

Above: This tower conserves water by cooling and
recirculating it. It can handle 30,000 gallons a minute
Below: lmperial's Redwater, Alta. fertilizer plants have
more than $4 million in pollution control facilities

itself never even touches the water. The drilling takes
place within a steel sleeve that runs from the platform
to deep beneath the ocean floor. On a typical offshore drilling rig garbage from the galley, soapy
washwater and other .wastes are taken from the rig
and disposed of ashore.

.,..

When an oil field is discovered the same precautions apply . Whether on land or sea, the well must not
be permitted to 'blow out' or 'gush'. Special devices
in wells and pipe line systems are designed to shut
down the oil flow if an accident occurs. In addition
to these precautions, Imperial trains its crews in well
control practices, although most drillers will never
see an uncontrolled well.
To make sure that the special drilling mud, or the
oil when it is produced, do not contaminate the
environment, oil wells are lined with steel pipe. The
salty water called brine that sometimes comes to the
surface with crude oil is returned to its original
underground site or to some other brine-bearing
formation, so it won't contaminate surface water or
sweet water.
Oil companies are concerned about oil pollution of
the oceans . The U.S. Coast Guard has estimated the
amount of oil pollution entering the world's oceans in
1971 at 4.9 million metric tons (other reports, using
different criteria, arrive at different estimates). Nearly
2.5 million tons came from industrial and automotive
waste oils that are discharged on land and end up in
the sea. Perhaps 100,000 tons originated from offshore operations. Just under 2.4 million tons originated from accidents and normal operations of the
maritime industry.
In general, reports on the amounts of oil entering
the oceans from sources in the maritime industry
suggest that about a third of it comes from nontanker vessels like ocean liners and cargo steamers.
Tankers , however, are still the single main source
and do contribute substantially even though most oil
companies strive to keep pollution to an absolute
minimum. Great care is taken to avoid spills during
loading and unloading. The officers and crews of
Esso tankers are thoroughly schooled in pollution
avoidance and control pro'cedures . In some ports,
specially trained retired tanker captains and chief
engineers are hired to board chartered ships in port
to ensure that pollution control measures are

followed.
The biggest source of tanker sea pollution results
from ballasting and tank cleaning operations. Such
oily disc'harges from a single ship may be small, but
the total from all tankers can be significant. These
discharges occur on the high seas away from coastal
waters except in isolated cases where a vessel
blatantly disregards the marine industry's clean seas
code, or national or international law. Progress has
been made by the tanker industry in reducing this
source of offshore sea pollution and work continues
to find ways to further reduce it.
The oily discharges from tanker operation originate in the need for a tanker that has discharged her
oil cargo to re-fill some of her tanks with water so
she will be sea-worthy for her voyage to the next
port. Inevitably, much of this ballast water mixes with
oil residue from the last load. Before the tanker can
take on a new oil cargo her water ballast must be
discharged. Since this is generally done into the
coastal waters of her next loading port, the ballast
water must be clean so as to avoid polluting the
environmentally sensitive tidal zone. Therefore, while
at sea the tanker must dispose of the ballast water
that was loaded into uncleaned cargo tanks; she
must also wash other tanks to receive sea water that
will remain clean for discharge in a port area.
The tanker industry has developed operating procedures to separate oily residues from the water ballast
loaded in uncleaned tanks and from the tank
washings. The water is then carefully decanted into
the seas and the oily residue retained on board in a
slops tank . Where reception and treatment facilities
are available at loading ports the oily slops are
discharged ashore. In most cases, particularly in the

As part of lmperial's oil spill containment and clean-up
program , Edmonton refinery employees practise putting a
boom in place on the North Saskatchewan River

"i

}

)

\ \
'

\

191

high-volume crude trade, the slops are retained on
board and fresh crude oil cargo is loaded on top of
the slops. In this manner most of the residue from
the previous cargo is reclaimed and not discharged
into the seas. This mode of operation is called 'loadon-top'. Imperial and the other major oil companies
have followed it in their own ocean tankers since
1964 and urge its adoption by all ocean tankers
engaged in carriage of persistent oils. About 75 per
cent of the world tanker fleet follows this procedure,
and the 25 per cent that don't use it account for about
70 per cent of the sea pollution from this operational
source. Improved load-on-top procedures - carefully
monitored, strictly enforced and universally applied could dramatically reduce pollution of the high seas.
This is an attainable goal and the industry is working
to achieve it.
To make sure its cargoes are carried safely and
with due regard for environmental protection, tankers
to be chartered by Esso must submit to pre-charter
inspection or provide past performance records for
screening - sometimes both. When Esso charters a
tanker a clause in the contract obliges th.e vessel to
follow the company's pollution-avoidance guidelines
including the load-on-top technique. Where these
special procedures and the retention of slops add to
costs, the company accepts them.
lmperial's lake and coastal tankers discharge all
oily ballast into shore facilities and no ballast is discharged into inland or coastal waters within 100
miles of shore.
All of the company's lake, coastal and ocean
tankers are equipped to handle minor oil spills.
However, despite all the precautions, accidents
sometimes occur. To minimize damage from them,
Imperial has organized clean-up teams at all its
major operating points, and has compiled a series of
detailed manuals so that every man knows exactly
what to do in case of an accident. Imperial also
coordinates its clean-up capabilities with other oil
companies and local authorities. More than 80 oilspill-cooperatives now exist across Canada, and they
can pool manpower, equipment, materials and knowledge for any emergency, quickly and efficiently.
The laws in some places do not make shipowners
sufficiently liable for damages to people affected by
tanker accidents, or even for clean-up costs. In order
to protect the public in those areas until responsive
international laws are ratified, a large number of
petroleum companies and private tanker owners have

Above: Tankers at the dock of the Imperial Oil refinery at
Montreal East, Que. Oily ballast is discharged into tanks at
the river's edge
Below: Imperial refineries run continual tests on the quality
of water they return to rivers and lakes. Here researchers
check purity of impounded basin water at Montreal East
refinery

entered into voluntary agreements to ensure that
damaged parties are reasonably and promptly
reimbursed or compensated . More than 95 per cent
of the world's tanker fleet and 80 per cent of the oil
moving in international trade are covered by these
voluntary agreements.
Pipe Lines
Most Canadian refineries receive their crude oil by
pipe line. In addition, smaller lines take products

5

from the refineries to major terminals. Pipe lines are
built to strict government and industry specifications
and are regularly monitored so that if a leak occurs
the line may be shut down, or if some surface construction job should venture too near, the construction gang is duly warned and watched. Pipe line
builders take special care in putting a line across a
river or harbor, where it is vulnerable to accidental
damage from shipping. On such water crossings the
line is wrapped in thick concrete and buried in a
trench below the river or harbor bed, so deep that
even a dragged anchor should not damage it.
Refineries
In spite of the tremendous volumes of products they
make, oil refineries are not major sources of water
pollution. One reason is that oil refining is done in a
system that is essentially closed. During processing,
the crude oil and the products made from it are
confined inside pipes and towers. And in comparison
with many other industries, very little of the materials
used ever becomes waste. Another reason is good
housekeeping; oil products can be dangerous if they
are handled improperly, and the people who work in
refineries handle them with care.
Large amounts of water are used in refining, but

..,.

Above: University of Calgary researchers conduct
experiments on biodegradibi/ity of oil in Arctic conditions.
Imperial helped pay for this research
Right: Huge 'blow-out preventers' are installed during
offshore drilling to protect the oceans from pollution in
case of sudden pressure surges

6

these amounts are steadily being reduced. At
Imperial refineries the water is air-cooled and
re-used. At lmperial's Sarnia plant, for instance, one
tower can cool 30,000 gallons of water a minute.
Such air cooling equipment is further reducing the
demand for water.
Water used in refining is eventually returned to its
source, but it is treated before it is released. The
degree of treatment depends on the extent of contamination. In some cases it needs only primary
treatment: removal of oil and solids in settling ponds
or basins where the solids sink to the bottom. The
water is then skimmed to remove surface oil; the
skimmed oil goes back to the refinery for reprocessing and the solids are burned or taken to a waste
disposal area.
Some highly concentrated refinery wastes - such as
acids, spent caustics and water that is contaminated
with sulfides, ammonia and phenols - get separate
and special treatment. In one such treatment the
contaminated water passes through a 'sour water
stripper' which removes the ammonia and sulfides.
The residue goes into biological oxidation units
where specially-bred bacteria literally eat up the
phenol compounds.

Oiland
theEnvironment

AIR
~~

The odds are you'll never breathe pure air.
Pure air is an invisible, odorless mixture of gases. It
contains about 78 per cent nitrogen and 21 per cent
oxygen. The remaining one per cent is mostly carbon
dioxide and argon with traces of neon, helium, xenon,
hydrogen, methane, krypton and varying amounts of
water vapor. Strictly speaking, air becomes polluted
whenever anything is added to this mixture.
Air pollution is a question of degree, depending on
whether the contaminants are sufficient to endanger
health, to damage plants or animals, or to impair
visibility in the case of transportation. On the other
hand, air need not be contaminated, in the health
hazard sense, to be offensive: if it smells bad, that's a
form of pollution.
To scientists, air impurities are generally classified
as gases and aerosols. Some of the gases are:
- Nitrogen oxides, formed when anything is burned.
Their commonest forms are nitrogen dioxide and
nitric oxide. When nitrogen dioxide reacts with other
gases in sunlight it can damage vegetation, cause
sore eyes and reduce visibility.
- Sulfur oxides, which occur mainly in the burning of
coal and oil. The commonest form is sulfur dioxide, a
colorless gas that can irritate the lungs. During smog,
some of this may change to sulfur trioxide and
sulfuric acid mist, which are more irritating than
sulfur dioxide.
- Carbon monoxide, formed when any carbon-bearing
material (wood, charcoal, paper, coal, oil, gas)
doesn't burn completely. It is particularly dangerous
in closed spaces.
- Hydrocarbons, which are hydrogen and carbon in
chemical combination. Oil and natural gas are mixtures of hydrocarbons.
-Aldehydes, particularly formaldehyde, which enter
the atmosphere from incinerator smoke, from industrial stacks, and from automobile and diesel exhausts.
Aerosols are suspensions of fine solid or liquid
particles in the air, some so small you can't see them.
They include smoke, fumes, dusts and mists.
The oil industry encounters and combats air pollution in two major areas of its operations: in manufacturing, which can create dust, smoke and smells;
and in the use of petroleum products - smoke and
gases result when fuels are burned to produce steam
for power generation or industrial use, to heat
buildings and operate vehicles and machinery. The
oil industry also must cope with the hydrogen sulfide
removed from crude oil and natural gas. Where the
amounts justify it, the sulfur can be removed and
used. Where it is present in small amounts it may be
burned if the resulting emissions are kept below
permissible levels.
One of the first things you notice in a refinery is
the absence of visible oil - just miles of pipe, huge
towers and furnaces. You also see almost no smoke,

.:....,,

Top: An operator examines a sample of sulfur produced
from the waste sulfide streams at lmperial's Winnipeg
refinery
Bottom: A closed-circuit TV system at Imperial Oil's Sarnia
refinery permits the operators to keep a close control on
the performance of flares. Also, cameras automatically
record the flare stacks' operation at 15-minute intervals

despite the tall stacks. Emergency gas flares, for
example, are almost always of the smokeless type, in
which steam is injected from nozzles, mixing air with
the escaping gas to burn it completely.
7

___
_

But refineries use large quantities of water. So,
particularly in cold weather, clouds of steam and
water vapor are common. These clouds are often
mistaken for smoke; in fact, steam and water vapor
do not contain air contaminants.
Oil refiners fight air pollution in several ways. Sulfur
compounds are burned off safely or are converted
into saleable sulfur. Special collectors catch the
catalyst dust, given off from the largest refining unit,
the fluid catalytic cracker. Carbon monoxide from the
same unit is put back to work as fuel, and burned to
generate steam.
Many refinery products are highly volatile. They
evaporate easily, which means that during storage
there's the possibility of large and expensive losses.
At the same time, evaporated products can make
odors in the atmosphere. Many Imperial refineries
have a combined solution to both problems: all large
storage tanks holding volatile products will have
floating roofs sealed with inflatable synthetic rubber
gaskets that look like huge inner tubes. They virtually
eliminate evaporation of the tanks' contents.
The products refineries make - heavy fuel oils,
domestic fuel oils and automobile gasoline among
them - are potential sources of air pollution. Heavy
fuels, burned in factories, thermal generating plants,
hospitals, large apartment buildings and offices,
contain as much as three per cent sulfur. Government
regulations in Canada are starting to call for reductions in the sulfur content of heavy fuels burned in
metropolitan areas.
To reduce the amount of sulfur in fuel oil is very
expensive. Experiments are under way to try to solve
the problem in other ways at lower cost. One of these
is called flue-gas desulfurization, in which chemical
treatment removes the sulfur dioxide before it
reaches the atmosphere. An Imperial Oil affiliate,
Esso Research and Engineering, has been carrying
out a major research program of this kind, in conjunction with several electric power companies in
Canada and the United States.
Although the sulfur content of home heating fuel is
low, such cities as Toronto and Montreal have established controls on it, too.

hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide exhaust emissions.
The task poses some challenging problems. One
kind of control under consideration is a thermal
reactor that would almost totally burn up exhaust
gases at very high temperatures. But this in turn calls
for special heat-resistant metals. A catalytic reactor,
using a catalyst to nullify the pollutants, is more
feasible. But tetraethyl lead, which is currently added
to gasoline to boost octane ratings, would considerably shorten the life and effectiveness of the catalyst.
There is no medical evidence that lead - in the
quantities found in the North American atmosphere is a health hazard. (Lead as once found in paint, and
which small children sometimes licked from their
toys, was another matter: it was sometimes found in
lethal quantities.) Lead is the most economic means
of giving gasoline the boost that modern cars
demand.
However, in the early 1970s the oil refiners were
faced with the necessity of developing more acceptable gasoline with little or no lead, so that manufacturers' control devices would operate properly. And
units to produce high-octane gasolines without lead
can cost as much as $25 million each. Aside from
this high expense in facilities to make high-octane
gasoline without lead, more crude oil is required to
make the same amount of fuel. Inevitably, some of
this extra cost will show up in the gasoline prices that
motorists will have to pay as part of the price of
clean air.

Opposite page: Water cooling towers (foreground) and
smokeless flare stacks are two of the many devices used by
refineries to help protect the environment
Be/ow: Monitoring stations set up by Imperial maintain a
constant check on air quality at the company's Sarnia
refinery. Here a member of the staff studies data recorded
by the monitors

Automobile

When the automobile engine turns gasoline into
energy to drive the car, it isn't totally efficient. It
does not completely burn the fuel, with the result that
hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide and a variety of
other chemical compounds go into the atmosphere.
There are three sources of emissions from an
automobile that is not fitted with pollution controls.
Some 15 per cent of the emissions come from the
fuel tank and from carburetor evaporation. Another
20 per cent originate in the crankcase. The rest,
along with carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and
lead compounds, come from the exhaust.
Automobile manufacturers have made considerable
progress in design changes to control these emissions. The car of 1970, properly equipped and maintained, gave off 70 per cent less carbon monoxide
and hydrocarbons than the 1960 car.
But the aim for the middle-to-late 1970s - to meet
expected government regulations - is an essentially
pollution-free car. Automobile companies and oil
companies are working toward this. Esso Research
and Engineering, for example, has developed a
catalytic reactor which in tests has achieved 85 per
cent control of nitrogen oxides and 90 per cent for

\
I

Oiland
theEnvironment

NOISE
~~

Acoustics experts, reporting to the International Standards Organization in Geneva, said that
if noise continues to rise at the present rate - about
one decibel a year- everyone living in a city could be
deaf by the year 2000. Of all the pollutants around us
noise has had the least attention. Yet it is realized
'
now that 'ordinary' everyday noise, over a sustained
period, can in some cases impair hearing and erode
health in other ways.
For years industry has recognized the noise
problem in factories and has taken steps to protect
workers from it. Meanwhile, though, the sound level

Imperial Oil industrial hygienist uses sophisticated
equipment to measure noise levels at Sarnia refinery

10

has been rising around all of us in daily life: heavy
transports, supersonic aircraft, staccato motorbikes
and snow vehicles, shrill motor boats, loud music,
rumbling farm machinery, pneumatic drills and all
!he other clatter of contemporary life. The oil industry
1snot a leading offender but it is a noise contributor
all the same, and noise is now one of its anti-pollution
targets.
Perhaps the noisiest part of the oil industry is the
r~fi~ery with its humming, whistling, rumbling,
h1s~1ngsounds. Part of the problem, in terms of
en_v1_ronment,
is the same problem faced by airports:
ongmally, the place was built in a relatively unpopulated area; now, population has closed in
around it. So a partial solution to industrial noise until some future century when technology enables a
factory or refinery to do its job in total silence - is
proper zoning, with perhaps a buffer zone of light
industry or greenbelt between heavy industry and
residential areas.
Refiners, nevertheless, must and do keep the noise
down, with mufflers on exhaust stacks and vents;
acoustically-lined housing on pumps, motors and
burners; and, in some locations , sound-deadening
walls surrounding noisy units. Sometimes one kind of
pollution control inadvertently leads to another kind
of_pollution. You can burn waste gases completely,
without a trace of smoke if you inject steam into the
flame. But as the steam content increases so does
the noise level. It is possible to operate a ~mokeless
flare with a minimum of noise, but it takes constant
supervision. Consequently, refinery operators monitor the flares to ensure they stay smokeless while
operating as quietly as possible. Some refineries use
closed-circuit television for this purpose.
During the planning of lmperial's Strathcona
refinery in Alberta, the sound level of all potential
noises was programmed into a computer and translated into decibels. This information helps to predict
the possible noise level of the new plant.
Imperial refineries frequently measure the noise
around them, but even so, things sometimes go
wrong. In 1971, residents.around lmperial's Regina
refinery were bothered by a loud noise that was
aggravated by easterly winds. The problem was
traced to a manufacturing flaw in a brand-new
muffler on the exhaust stack of the catalytic cracking
unit. A new muffler went up and throughout the
incident, all local residents wer~ kept informed of
the cause and the cure in personal letters from the
refinery manager.
There are, of course, other noise hazards in the oil
industry. Exploration sounds that could disturb
northern wildlife will be discussed in this booklet's
section on the Arctic. Some Esso car washes have
reported that the sound of dryer fans is annoying to
neighbours and has to be muffled. The pumps on fuel
delivery trucks set up a rumble that sometimes makes
windows rattle. So far complaints have been negligible but Imperial has asked equipment suppliers to
start making pumps that will lower the noise level.
As yet, however, there are few laws regulating
noise and even fewer facilities to measure abuses
accurately enough to permit regulations to be written
and enforced. Such laws and facilities will come. In
the meantime, Imperial will conduct its operations in
ways that will not only meet but may improve upon
existing or future requirements.

Oiland
theEnvironment

acting upon in the Arctic. No part of Canada is
getting more research attention from the participating
oil companies, and from Imperial in particular. For
the Arctic is unique, relatively unknown and surprisingly susceptible to damage. It must be treated
with uncommon care.
In 1970 Imperial led in the formation of the Arctic
Petroleum Operators Association, a group created to
sponsor research projects aimed at solving environmental and operational problems in the North. The
same year, Imperial co-sponsored a study of bird life
in the Mackenzie delta, which helped the Canadian
Wildlife Service establish migratory patterns. This
information will permit the oil companies to plan
their operations in ways and places that will create
the least disturbance to birds. Within the company,
Imperial has held an Arctic workshop for the instruction of its northern seismic and drilling workers.
Imperial has been exploring the North, off and on
since the early part of this century. It made the first'
oil discovery in the region in 1920 at Norman Wells,
N.W.T., 90 miles south of the Arctic Circle. An

theARCTIC

~~

The noise of a helicopter disturbs the wild
geese that nest in large numbers along the Mackenzie
delta in Canada's Arctic. As long as 45 minutes
before a chopper's arrival, the geese sense its
coming and flee from their nests. While they're away
from the nests, such predators as foxes and gulls
may steal the eggs or eat the young. Result: oil
companies have restricted their noise-making
activities in main nesting areas during the May-June
nesting season.
This is only one of many facts the oil industry is

Even in winter special vehicles and techniques are required to protect the frozen tundra

Imperial refinery has operated there since 1932.
The search for oil and natural gas in this vast and
forbidding area is totally different from the search in
any other part of the country. Quite apart from the
problems of cold and transportation, there is the
matter of protecting the unusual environment.
The northland is made up of tundra - the treeless
area - and the taiga - a Russian word meaning
coniferous scrub forest. In either area, but particularly the tundra, the ground cover is fragile. It often
is a thin covering of moss and other organic material
insulating the frozen ground beneath. If this insulating blanket is destroyed in areas where the
permafrost contains a lot of ice, the ground may melt
and slump, leaving a deep and possibly permanent
scar on the land - and no vegetation. Slumping cannot occur, of course, where the permafrost is dry; for
instance, in areas of solid rock, or well-drained
gravel.
The ground cover is vital to the ecology of the
Arctic, and therefore much research is being devoted
to the question of moving equipment over areas of
permafrost. Imperial uses tracked and wheeletl
vehicles in the North only where they will not destroy
the plant cover. Vehicles are being developed that
won't disturb the vegetation, and until they are available summer seismic work is restricted to areas
where the tundra is dry and tough. (Experiments are
being conducted with tracked vehicles that 'tread'
more lightly, in terms of pressure per square inch,
than a man.)
Even winter operations can damage the ground
cover if bulldozer blades are set too low when clearing roads and campsites. To alleviate this problem,
bulldozers are fitted with "mushroom shoes" to avoid
penetration. And the operators are instructed to use a
technique known as 'high blading', which moves and
compacts snow without d~stroying vegetation
underneath.
lmperial's drilling rigs are supported on wooden
piles or on thick gravel pads above the ground, or
both - again to protect the ground cover. The heat
given off during a drilling operation can thaw the
underlying permafrost even in mid-winter. To prevent
this, drillers insert a double-walled conductor pipe
into the upper part of the hole. They drill through the
center while a refrigerant is pumped through coils
between the two walls of conductor pipe, to keep the
permafrost frozen. Imperial also uses a special lowtemperature drilling mud in the Arctic. When a well is
completed and the rig moved away, the site is cleared
and the soil and vegetation are put back to preserve
the permafrost in its natural state.
Garbage disposal is a problem everywhere, but
especially in the North. Some companies bale the
waste and fly it by helicopter to dumps at northern
communities. Imperial has designed a portable waste
disposal plant for seismic and drilling camps. It burns
all combustible camp wastes and the ashes are
buried in deep holes of small diameter. Whatever the
technique, Imperial employees are forbidden to leave
litter in the wilderness.
In the event of major oil production in the Arctic the
same precautions will be taken with the rigs that
develop the fields. But drilling is only one aspect of
the petroleum industry. A matter of concern to everyone is the effect of future pipe lines on the tundra.
Like all oil, northern oil comes out of the earth and
is transported at temperatures above freezing. Buried
12

pipe lines would therefore need insulation to keep
the permafrost from melting. Imperial and others, in a
joint study of pipe line construction in the North,
operated a test section of 48-inch line near lnuvik, to
see how an oil pipe line reacts and how it affects the
environment at various temperatures, to study insulation, and to experiment with types of above-ground
pipe construction.
An important concern is the effect of pipe lines on
animal migrations, particularly the movements of the
caribou. In other places, simulated pipe lines have
been built high enough for the animals to walk under,
and also built so that they can be easily climbed
over. The movement of caribou around both kinds is
being carefully studied.
Not only pipe lines but every kind of northern
transportation is getting special attention. Wherever
possible, frozen lakes are used as airstrips. Where
these are not available, airstrips are made by laying
gravel on top of the tundra without breaking the surface vegetation. Winter roads connecting the airstrips
to drill sites are built by the high-blading technique.
Still other kinds of research are devoted to housing
and all the attendant problems of living in the North.
Getting the oil out without harming the environment
is the objective, but there is a side benefit. All of the
research is making an enormous contribution to
man's overall understanding of the North.
The dilemma of the oil industry, as of any industry
today, is how to produce the goods that most people
want, at a price they can afford, without degrading
the environment.
Why, for example, should oil companies even
bother to explore the Arctic or the seas when there
is ample oil for the immediate future in conventional
reserves? Because, sooner than most people realize
Canada will need those additional reserves. Oil and
natural gas supply an increasing amount of our
energy needs - in Canada, some 70 per cent - and it
takes many years to find and develop new reserves.
So the oil search must continue as long as Canadians need oil for home heating, gasoline for automobiles, and petrochemipals for the thousands o!
other objects of our daily lives. Plants must be built
and expanded to manufacture the products. And the
search for better anti-pollution measures must likewise go on. This is why Imperial maintains a full-time
department of environmental protection. It is why, in
addition to all the anti-pollution techniques described
in this booklet, the company supports many private
researchers, in ventures ranging from a study of the
effects of oil on ocean lobster, to the breeding of
microbes that may literally eat up oil spills. For
Imperial sees its job as helping to meet Canada's
growing needs for oil energy and chemicals while
conducting its operations in ways that help attain the
environmental quality that Canadians require.

On its own, and in conjunction with other companies ,
Imperial Oil is engaged in research to protect the Arctic
Top left: Experimental pipe line tests the effect on Arctic
terrain
Top right: A researcher studying fish habitats measures
water depths in the Mackenzie delta
Lower left : University of Alberta researcher studies tundra
revegetation
Lower right: For summer drilling the permafrost needs
protection. Here refrigeration is tried