A Norwegian politician called for marine mammal observer onboard seismic vessels, ahead of the agreement between Russia and Norway regarding mutual rights to seismic acquisition in the Barents Sea.
Namely, Green Party’s Arne Liaklev said that acoustic surveys for oil deposits below the seabed should be avoided if there are whales nearby.
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Seismic ships are used for oil and gas exploration below the seabed. Their sounds can infiltrate into hundreds of kilometres into the ocean floor. Namely, these ships’s airguns emit sound every ten to fifteen seconds, often for a whole. In addition, hydrophones are also used to analyze the sound that reflects back to the sea surface.
In order to mitigate this, along the coasts of Greenland, Denmark has made it mandatory for seismic vessels to collect seabird and marine mammal observation data. What is more, observers on board the ships must watch for whales before and during seismic survey.
However, according to Mr. Liaklev such a clause is not included in the Norwegian-Russian agreement. He also explained that whales can be injured or even die because of high noise blasts and other sound gear like airguns.
Specifically, due to the increased use of sonars underneath the surface, cetaceans are changing their diving behaviors because they are panicking. This causes decompression symptoms affecting vital organs, which can lead to death.
Some animals that are severely injured or even dead are washing up in the shores, however the majority of these animals die unnoticed in the open sea and sink.
Arne Liaklev added that Norway must collaborate with Russia to go on a study tour to New Zealand, which has updated its code of conduct for limiting acoustic disturbance to marine mammals from seismic operations. This code has been welcomed by New Zealand’s oil exploration association.
