Norilsk oil tank spill: the worst environmental disaster in the history of the Arctic

The Russian Arctic is vast and sparsely populated, rich in mineral resources. In recent years, Russia has been stepping up energy development in the Arctic region, trying to make the region an important fulcrum for the country's economic development. On May 29, 2020, the storage tank of a thermal power plant in Norilsk, Russia's Arctic region, ruptured, causing more than 20,000 tons of diesel fuel to leak and causing serious damage to the local ecosystem. Due to the scope of the event and the depth of the damage, it is considered the worst environmental disaster in the history of the Arctic region.

A ruptured oil storage tank has plunged the Arctic city into an environmental disaster

Located 250 miles north of the Arctic Circle and part of Russia's Northern Territory, Norilsk is one of Russia's major non-ferrous metal industrial bases with rich copper, nickel and other mineral resources. With the expansion of Russia's energy development activities in the Arctic region, Norilsk has developed into a world-famous metallurgical industrial city, and has also created the global nickel smelting giant - Norilsk Nickel Company. On May 29, 2020, the oil storage tank of a thermal power plant owned by Norilsk Nickel suddenly collapsed and ruptured, causing more than 20,000 tons of diesel oil to leak, staining the nearby Ambernaya River blood-red and polluting an area of 350 square kilometers. After the accident, due to the concealment of the company involved, the leaked diesel fuel flowed 12 kilometers from the accident site, along the Ambernaya River into Lake Piasino and finally to the Arctic Ocean. According to the statistics of the Russian environmental monitoring department, about 15,000 tons of the leaked diesel entered the water body, and 6,000 tons seeped into the soil.

The spill is a mirror that illustrates the problems of energy development in the Arctic

Norilsk is one of the most polluted cities in the world, and the oil tank spill has plunged the Arctic region into an unprecedented ecological crisis. It is estimated that the diesel spill in this incident was eight times that of the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill, and it could take five to 10 years to clean up the area.

Looking back at the whole process of the Norilsk oil tank leak, from the rupture of the oil storage tank to the diesel leak to the large-scale spread and finally the environmental disaster, human error and time again and again were the main cause of the serious accident. At first, the head of Norilsk Nickel claimed that the storage tanks of the thermal power plant were inspected every two years and that if there were problems, they would be repaired, so the accident was not caused by the quality of the tanks, but by the collapse of the storage tanks due to the melting of permafrost. However, research investigations have revealed that the tank used by the company was severely corroded and had a perforation at the bottom, which was believed to be the key to the accident.

In fact, the Russian government has asked Norilsk Nickel to apply anti-corrosion materials to the surface of the storage tanks to ensure the safety of the tanks. However, the company did not take effective anti-corrosion measures, which laid the hidden danger for the inevitable occurrence of the leak. After the accident, Norilsk Nickel believed that the impact was controllable and did not report it to the government in a timely manner. The leaked diesel fuel spread rapidly after entering the water body, staining the nearby river blood red in just two days. Even so, the incident has not been taken seriously by the companies involved and the local government, which has also caused the Arctic region to fall into a deteriorating ecological situation.

Five days after the accident, the city of Norilsk was declared a federal emergency due to the unimaginable scale of the oil spill, and the state was mobilized to deal with the accident. However, the city of Norilsk did not consider the construction of urban infrastructure and public emergency facilities in the energy development project, and although hundreds of people were involved in the pollution clean-up work, the relevant emergency rescue equipment and materials were difficult to reach the contaminated area, and the oil pollution clean-up and ecological restoration work was quite slow. According to the investigation, two years after the accident, there are still many red pollutants left in the local rivers and soil, and the environmental impact caused by the incident will be long-lasting.

The profound revelations of the Norilsk oil tank leak

Oil is an important energy source for modern industry, and with the continuous advancement of the mainland's industrialization process, its demand is also increasing year by year. As a key equipment for storing oil, the safety of oil tanks is crucial to the sustainable development of the mainland's energy industry. Reflecting on the Norilsk oil tank leak, we can learn the following.

The system strengthens the safety management measures of oil storage tanks. As we all know, oil storage tanks are important containers used by energy enterprises, and a large number of flammable, explosive and diffuse oil products are stored inside, posing a threat to the ecological environment around the enterprise and the safety of residents. Therefore, in the process of energy development and utilization, it is necessary to attach great importance to the safety of oil tanks, and take effective risk management measures to prevent the occurrence of sudden oil spills. Specifically: First, under the guidance of laws and regulations such as the "Special Equipment Safety Law of the People's Republic of China" and the "Regulations on the Safety Management of Hazardous Chemicals", the local emergency management department should supervise the implementation of the oil storage tank security inspection system, strictly review the professional qualifications and management processes of relevant enterprises in the design, production, installation and maintenance of oil tanks, and regularly urge enterprises to carry out equipment aging assessment to ensure the safety of long-term service of oil tanks. Second, enterprises using oil storage tanks should establish an inspection ledger, clearly mark the age and location distribution of oil tanks, and detail the type and volume of stored oil products. At the same time, a standardized operation manual is compiled for the oil storage tank to prevent human error from affecting the safety of the tank. Third, in accordance with the "Regulations for the Safety and Technical Supervision of Fixed Pressure Vessels" and other regulations, combined with advanced technologies such as image recognition and digital twins, intelligent dynamic monitoring of the foundation, tank structure, liquid level and temperature in the oil area, and multiple measures are taken to prevent and resolve the safety risks of oil storage tanks.

Improve and improve the response mechanism for sudden oil spills. The Norilsk oil tank leak is a reminder of the corrosion and rupture of oil storage tanks over time, which can cause large-scale environmental pollution. Therefore, it is necessary to continuously improve the response mechanism for sudden oil spills on the basis of strict prevention of oil tank safety accidents, and control the scope of environmental pollution caused by oil spills to the greatest extent. This requires: first, to improve the risk awareness of the staff in the energy industry, increase the detection of equipment safety in the process of production and operation, and at the same time establish and improve the 24-hour on-duty system, clarify the basic scope of responsibilities and emergency response tasks, and make every effort to prepare for prevention and control in advance. The second is to take the "National Emergency Plan for Environmental Emergencies" and "Emergency Management Measures for Environmental Emergencies" and other documents as action guidelines to standardize the emergency management of environmental emergencies, improve the working mechanism for responding to oil spills, and reduce the pollution risks caused by oil spills as much as possible. The third is to establish dynamic simulation scenarios for different levels of oil spill incidents, and carry out normalized and practical emergency drills from multiple dimensions such as oil spill containment and control, pollution assessment, personnel evacuation, information notification, and rescue linkage, so as to further improve the comprehensive response capability of sudden oil spill events and prevent the spread of local pollution to the surrounding environment.

Actively promote the sustainable development of the Arctic region. The unique natural environment of the Arctic region is vital to the ecology of the earth, and if there is an environmental pollution accident, it will cause incalculable consequences. The Norilsk oil tank leak is a wake-up call for the international community to exploit the resources of the Arctic region. As an important stakeholder in Arctic affairs, the mainland adheres to the "Ice Silk Road" as the carrier, encourages relevant enterprises to use capital and technological advantages to develop green energy projects, and realizes the sustainable development of Arctic resources through international cooperation. Based on the good foundation of cooperation between China and Russia Yamal LNG, Arctic LNG and other energy projects, we will promote the implementation of environmental supervision measures for projects and enterprises, effectively prepare for environmental emergencies, further enhance the green innovation capabilities of energy enterprises, and achieve a balance between the development and utilization of the Arctic region and environmental protection. Of course, the ecological and environmental protection work in the Arctic region cannot be accomplished by any one country alone, and requires the joint efforts of the international community. As an important participant and leader in international cooperation on ecological and environmental protection, the mainland should take a more active role in the governance of the Arctic ecological environment and take the initiative to share the practical achievements and successful experience of China's ecological civilization construction. At the same time, guided by the white paper on China's Arctic Policy, relevant countries are encouraged to jointly explore plans for the sustainable use of Arctic resources, work together to promote environmental protection and ecological restoration in the Arctic region, and contribute China's strength to building an Arctic ecological and environmental community.