bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Evolution of an Electronic Assessment for Evaluating Trip Risk, Compliance, Approval Level, and Tracking
Authors: Meade Dave Paul , Ball Andy , Brandsness Mark
Published: September 2012

Driving continues to be the leading year-on-year cause of fatalities in the oil and gas industry despite the implementation of risk control actions such as driver training, skill assessments and basic journey management controls. An oilfield services company has introduced processes and tools to address the many challenges involved in journey management to improve its driving performance. The company drives approximately 1.5 million miles every day with over 50,000 drivers of varying experience who operate more than 24,000 vehicles of different and challenging sizes and applications that require different driving skills. It is a complex task to validate that the drivers are certified to drive these vehicles in the range of environments related to the locations where they work and the specific journeys to be made. To address this complexity, in 2009 the company introduced a web-based electronic journey management system called "eJourney" to help manage and standardize journey management across its worldwide operations.

This paper describes how eJourney has evolved since its introduction and how it has become the centre of a consistent process that is compliant with the company's driving policy and driving standard. Furthermore, the paper looks at how the system supports accountability in the journey management process. It also describes how, over a one-year period, this simple web-based application has supported over 1.3 million trips and how the system has promoted a consistent and standardized process for creating a trip, monitoring the ongoing journey, and finally closing the journey. The paper also demonstrates how the online journey management outputs have become a visible counseling guide and a proactive tool in helping to reduce driving risks; and that this has been reflected in improvement in vehicle accident rates.
Achieving International Standards in the Arctic: The Need for Modern Interdisciplinary Technical and Management Approaches
Authors: Aronson John G. , Raykin Viktor
Published: September 2012

The rapid expansion of oil and gas exploration and production into the Arctic Region will require advanced interdisciplinary technical and management approaches to achieve international standards. This paper explores the current status of Arctic exploration activities with a focus on northern Russia, and expands on lessons learned from other Arctic and sub-Arctic projects such as Sakhalin, Shtokman, and Beaufort Sea US and Canada. Coordination of multinational oil and gas organizations for environmental, health, safety, and security performance to international standards requires considerable careful multi faceted planning. Fundamental to success are both cultural and regulatory alignment processes, and a recognition of the need for interdisciplinary technological and management considerations to cover the challenges in physical, chemical, biological, and social components. This paper identifies specific emerging Arctic considerations which highlight the need for interdisciplinary approaches such as sea ice dynamics, navigation, undersea completion technologies, logistics, meteorology, satellite communications in Polar regions, permafrost, marine ecology and biodiversity (fisheries, birds, mammals, plankton), native people’s, and application of international laws, treaties,, and standards. Meeting the challenges of the Arctic will require substantial increases in investment, coordination, cooperation, and interdisciplinary scientific knowledge.
From Zombie to Zorro - A Neuroscience-Based Approach to Safety Leadership
Authors: Wentzel Nada
Published: September 2012

It is said that a rocket uses 80% of its fuel just to take off. Then, once it breaks free of the earth's gravitational field, it cruises along with minimal fuel consumption. There are two principles at work here, which can be applied to unleashing an organisation's safety leadership capability.

The first is inertia. Inertia says something that is not moving will tend to remain stationary until sufficient energy is applied to move it. The second is momentum. Momentum says something that is already moving will tend to keep moving unless sufficient force is applied to stop or change its motion.

In safety, when safety plateaus or safety performance or culture regresses, energy is needed to create a shift. Eighty percent of the energy or resources need to be invested to initiate ‘take off’ in a new direction and once you’ve taken off, momentum will keep it moving forward. Consider, that the new direction is a new perspective on what influences people to think feel and do safety.
Integrating Premier Standards of Socioeconomic Management into Upstream Activities through Management Systems
Authors: Kominas Charlie , Shaw Miles , Moynihan Kelly , Brinkmann Philip , Tyler David
Published: September 2012

Oil and gas industry projects have the potential to impact individuals, communities and the environment where they occur. Early identification, planning and engagement are essential to implement appropriate risk management-related avoidance and/or mitigation measures as well as identify and optimize opportunities to achieve positive socioeconomic outcomes. ExxonMobil recognizes that effective management of social and environmental issues is fundamental to the management of risk related to its major upstream projects and to achieving long-term Company success.

Socioeconomic Management is the term ExxonMobil uses to describe its approach to managing local community impacts. Socioeconomic Management is a risk-based approach comprised of several core elements that include but are not limited to: adhering to internal corporate policies, expectations and standards; complying with applicable host country regulatory requirements, international conventions and universally recognized industry practices; engaging with external groups; and building local economic capacity.

ExxonMobil's Upstream Socioeconomic Management process covers: Impact assessment and mitigation;Human rights;Community relations;Indigenous peoples;Cultural heritage and diversity;Land use and resettlement;Economic development; and,Transparency and corruption.

Socioeconomic issues can be difficult to identify, predict, assess and consequently manage, and business challenges include, and are often dominated by, socioeconomic attributes. Industry data indicate that international oil and gas projects are often adversely impacted, from a cost and schedule perspective, by stakeholder-related issues. ExxonMobil's own experiences have reinforced that sufficient time and resources must be dedicated to manage socioeconomic issues. Early and frequent engagement with the appropriate external stakeholders is an important factor in addressing these challenges.

What makes ExxonMobil successful is its commitment to carefully and systematically identify, plan for, and manage risk. This is accomplished by applying a rigorous management approach — the Operations Integrity Management System, or OIMS. OIMS integrates safety, security, health, environmental and social risk management into every aspect of ExxonMobil's business. ExxonMobil's approach to managing local community impacts is integrated into OIMS.
Harnessing the Passion - Building Environmental Expertise
Authors: Dyer Emma
Published: September 2012

In the past three years, Santos has undergone substantial growth across multiple jurisdictions. In this time the number of environmental specialists has more than doubled.

Santos’ vision is to be a leading energy company for Australia and Asia. To do this we have to have the best people doing the right jobs. To support this, there are a number of approaches and tools that we have developed, including: Development planning systemsMailing lists and group emailsThe on-line Environment CommunityThe Environment Network meetingEnvironmental leaders meetingThe Environmental Excellence ForumDatabases

A number of hurdles have been experienced along the path to developing Santos’ environmental professionals into a cohesive knowledgeable cohort. Challenges include: Changing regulatory and community expectationsShortage of appropriately skilled and experienced peopleChanging technologyBusy-nessChanging business needs

The fundamental key to succeeding in developing a cohesive environmental community has been using consistent and regular communications.

Santos’ journey to build an environmental profession made up of skilled and empowered people that know and support their colleagues is well underway. The challenge is to ensure that we can keep up as technology continues to evolve, community and regulators’ expectations change and the company strives to be a leading energy company for Australia and Asia.
Is there Harm in ‘Zero’?
Authors: Wentzel Nada
Published: September 2012

I used to fly aeroplanes. I quickly learned that a flight plan is critical to reach your intended destination. An aeroplane flying west of Australia headed for Brazil, will end up in North America if you alter its flight path by only two degrees! Small but significant shifts in direction will have a major impact on the final destination reached.

For more than a decade now, the Oil and Gas industry has been on a quest to achieve the goal of ‘Zero’, hypnotised by the assumption that this vision drives people to take action consistent with injury prevention, including minor injuries, fatalities and Major Accident Events (MAE’s). Does the vision inspire decisions and behavior needed to prevent serious harm or has it seduced us into a high-energy low-impact dance, somewhat like a Zumba aerobics class?

What is the purpose of a vision that arguably can never be achieved? And what is the impact of a vision of ‘Zero’ if people don't believe it?
The Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves: A Public-private Initiative to Save Lives, Improve Livelihoods, Empower Women, and Combat Climate Change
Authors: Sully Rita
Published: September 2012

The paper draws strongly on Igniting Change: A Strategy for Universal Adoption of Clean Cookstoves and Fuelsi, written by Leslie Cordes, Senior Director, United Nations Foundation, on behalf of the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves. To develop the strategy the Alliance brought together more than 350 stakeholders in the global cookstoves sector in an unprecedented consultative process.

This paper will provide a brief overview of the risks associated with traditional cooking practices, outline the barriers to widespread adoption of clean cooking solutions, introduce the enterprise based approach and the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves, and explain what Royal Dutch Shell plc1 is doing in this space.

While use of modern cookstoves is taken for granted in most of the developed world, nearly three billion people around the globe still cook their food each day the way it has been done for thousands of years – over an open flame or on a traditional cookstove using solid fuels like wood, coal, crop residues, and animal dung. In sub-Saharan Africa and Asia, the lack of access to clean cookstoves and fuels for cooking is especially acute, with a third of the urban population and the vast majority of the rural poor using solid fuels to cook their daily meals over open fires or inefficient cookstovesii made from clay, metal, or bricks. In many countries, the rate of solid fueliii usage, especially in rural areas, is 80% to 90%iv, and the number of people who use these fuels for cooking is expected to rise as population growth outpaces economic development. The International Energy Agency estimates that by 2030, 100 million more people will use traditional biomass fuels than do so today.v Even where there is access to electricity or LPG, primarily in urban areas, the use of solid fuels for cooking persists due to cost and cultural factors.
Coal Seam Gas Water - River Discharge: Context Matters
Authors: Murray Janelle
Published: September 2012

Coal Seam gas (CSG) is a rapidly growing industry in Queensland, Australia. Water is produced as a by-product of the CSG production process, with the management of this associated water (called CSG water) widely accepted as one of the industry's main challenges.

The Australia Pacific Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) project is a coal seam gas (CSG) to liquefied natural gas (LNG) joint venture between Origin, ConocoPhillips and Sinopec Group. The Australia Pacific LNG project proposes to supply CSG from the Walloons gas fields in south central Queensland to a LNG plant located on Curtis Island, off the coast of Gladstone, on the central Queensland coast. Origin is the upstream operator of the Australia Pacific LNG project (the Project).

In the Walloons coal seams, CSG water keeps natural gas adsorbed as a thin film on the surface of the coal. The pressure of the surrounding body of CSG water allows the gas to be retained within the seam by adsorption to the surface of coal particles. Hence to extract gas the water pressure needs to be reduced by transferring the water to the surface.

Water from CSG wells extracted to enable gas production is variable in quantity, difficult to predict and influences gas production rates. Variability in water production can be due to the location of the well, communication with other wells, decline in pressure during well life and permeability of the coal seam. The quality of the CSG water can vary from well to well and more noticeably across the project area, but it consistently contains elevated quantities of salts. Appropriate management of CSG water is required to mitigate environmental risks associated with untreated CSG water. Uses for such large and difficult-to-predict quantities of both treated and untreated water in theWalloons gas fields region are limited. As such, it is acknowledged that the treatment, use and disposal of CSG water present a challenge for the Project and the CSG industry in general.

This paper will use the Talinga development area, established in 2008 and located southwest of Chinchilla in Queensland as a case study in water management adopted by Australia Pacific LNG. In particular, this paper focuses on the discharge of treated CSG water to surface watercourses (creeks/rivers) - one of a suite of water management options used by the Project. This paper explores the regulatory framework governing this aspect of water management and Origin's approach to ensuring the environmental values of receiving waters are preserved.

At time of writing, the gas production from the Talinga field has been operated under an Environmental Authority (EA) with provision for an initial 18-month continuous discharge to the Condamine River of 20 ML/d as the preliminary water management option underpinning a broader management strategy. The broader strategy includes transitioning to a managed discharge flow regime that mimics the natural flows of the River.
Screening for Future Coronary Heart Disease in Oilfield Personnel by Using Risk Factor Categories
Authors: Vitkovsky Artem , Yakovlev Alexey
Published: September 2012

Risk factors such as blood pressure, serum cholesterol, and cigarette smoking were used in screening for developing coronary heart disease (CHD) events among 1,300 employees at an oilfield services company in Russia.

The research focuses on practical use of the Framingham Heart Study results and development of a program that enables determining overall cardiac risk for individual employees. It also considers various categories of company personnel, clearly identifying risk factors critical for the development of CHD events and recommending individual changes in lifestyle or medical treatment for employees with advanced atherosclerosis as well as tracking status changes over time.

In accordance with Russian legislation, employees undergo an annual physical examination that looks at various factors, including predictors for future CHD events. Ten-year CHD risk is estimated using Framingham equations. Results of medical examinations of both office and field personnel were processed by a local data application system, creating a cardiac risk profile for each employee. More than 4,700 physical examinations were entered into the system and were analyzed for the past 8 years. Special attention was paid to employees working at rig sites, offshore, and other remote locations. The results of 858 medical examinations over a one-year period have been analyzed. The analysis demonstrated that 40 field employees fall in the high cardiac risk zone. The company's cardiac risk reduction program is meant to cover 8,000 of the company's employees in Russia.

This approach both identified employee groups with the highest risk of development of CHD events and implemented an appropriate campaign within the company to reduce risk. This program intends to reduce CHD incidents company-wide as well as improve the success of cardiovascular campaigns.
Using Lagging Data to Develop Leading Indicators to Improve the Management of Frontline Operational Risk
Authors: Barry George , Lehmann Scott
Published: September 2012

Efforts to address the ongoing challenge of understanding and managing operational risk in hazardous industry often result in better rulebooks, new ‘leading’ and ‘lagging’ indicators and more robust procedures yet no noticeable decrease in the number of HiPO’s, incidents and fatalities. Compounding the challenge is the fact that our indicators, whether leading or lagging, are typically data points that provide little information to have better conversations with our people in order to improve decision making.

Many of the existing control systems, like permit to work, are managed using paper. These systems offer little insight into the execution of work as jobs are viewed individually rather than collectively or holistically, rendering it difficult to understand combined data and lagging indicators. As a result, management has little visibility, oversight or control on the cumulative risk of frontline work.

By better understanding frontline cumulative risk, we can develop valuable leading indicators that can determine risk trends and encourage better decision making. Technology can play an integral role in guiding and structuring decision making by ensuring safety procedures are embedded into operational processes. The work execution process is captured, providing a window into how well frontline operational risks are managed. Capturing the data that is generated by the actual or the planned process provides us with further context and information than single data points.

Using a customer data set of frontline work execution data and a copy of their incident and accident information, we can show what issuers and approvers of frontline work would have seen in terms of the actual cumulative risk score for frontline planned work. We will be able to demonstrate that they would have had the visibility to know where to act and when thus potentially avoiding or minimizing the scope of an incident. By aggregating lagging data across an organization, we can provide enhanced leading indicators and improved organizational knowledge, thus moving from a culture of ‘find & fix’ to ‘predict & prevent’. Operational insight can be viewed from frontline to the boardroom, enabling all levels of employees to make more informed decisions in real-time and for future planning.
The implementation of telemedicine as an integrated part of the health service on the Statoil operated installations on the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS)
Authors: Todnem Kjetil , Evensen Arne M. , Oveland Nils Petter
Published: September 2012

The use of telemedicine in various settings has increased during the last decade, reflecting the technological development with the possibility to transfer large amount of data per second through fiber optic cables. Hence it has become possible to obtain HD quality images and sound, which must be recognized as a prerequisite for a well-functioning telemedicine setup. In the oil and gas industry, as well as in other public or private settings, activities in remote areas has triggered the need for implementing the best solutions available for optimizing the emergency preparedness and patient treatment, and minimizing patient risk. Telemedicine is an important tool in achieving this. Statoil has implemented telemedicine on all Statoil operated offshore installations on the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS), following an initial pilot project from 2007–2008. The setup involves a "Medical unit" with a computer and a large HD video screen, a smaller video conferencing unit for the hospital office, and 2 cameras; one ceiling mounted and one mounted on the "Medical unit". Some of the medical doctors on duty 24/7 also have access to a similar "Medical unit" on shore and "medical units" are also placed in 3 of the university hospitals in Norway which are located closest to the oil fields along the Norwegian coastline. The telemedicine equipment is compatible with the defibrillator/monitoring unit being used on the oil installations, and also other medical equipment is included in the setup, for instance an otoscope. Other equipment may be added when deemed necessary and beneficial for the medical services. Internal "Help and Support" is in place and troubleshooting is carried out in the same manner as for the rest of our Company IT-support. The telemedicine equipment is furthermore readily used for meetings and educational purposes, and to spread important medical information to many locations/installations simultaneously; which has been important during epidemic situations(Swine flu, noro virus etc).

Recently, we have also demonstrated that it is possible, using the existing telemedicine equipment, to successfully remotely guide a nurse offshore in focused ultrasound examinations, with the medical doctor/expert located onshore. The usefulness of ultrasound on the Norwegian continental shelf remains to be proven, but there is an evident potential for its use in remote settings with large distances to secondary or tertiary health care facilities.
Montara: Scientific Monitoring of Shallow Reefs and Submerged Shoals
Authors: Heyward A. , Jones R. , Burns K. , Meeuwig J. , Cappo M. , Meekan M. , Oliver J. , Wright R.
Published: September 2012

We present results of monitoring studies on emergent coral reefs and submerged shoals, two potentially sensitive seabed habitats found within range of the modeled hydrocarbon plume from the 2009 Montara uncontrolled release in the Timor Sea.

Divers conducted reef surveys 6 and 16 months after the release was stopped. Hydrocarbons were detected in surface carbonate sediments at very low levels and declined between the two surveys in both frequency of occurrence and concentration. While hydrocarbon degradation precluded source matching, some samples were consistent with a Montara type oil, but there was also evidence for multiple sources of hydrocarbons in the region. Coral and fish communities were in good condition and potential indicators of disturbance in some elements, for example moderate levels of coral bleaching observed in 2010, were related to unusually warm sea surface temperatures rather than distance from the well head platform or plume.

The submerged shoals component targeted a series of nine discrete shoals ~30–150 km from Montara well head platform. The shoals have abrupt bathymetric profiles rising from 100–200 m depths to within 15–36 m of the sea surface. Sufficient light reaches these plateau environments to support benthic habitats for primary producers, including algae, corals and seagrass. Sampling used remotely deployed cameras and grabs.Benthic and fish communities were diverse and shared many species with shallow coral reefs. Hydrocarbon contamination was measured around the base of the shoals. While there was no conclusive evidence of a impact from the spill, spatial patterns in a subset of the fish data showed a reduction in abundance and diversity at shoals closest to the well head. Similarly a marked reduction in seagrass was noted on one shoal closest to the well head platform in the period between surveys, 6–16 months after the release was stopped. These observations may reflect an influence from the hydrocarbon release but could equally be the result of natural spatial patterns and disturbance events in the region.

Overall, the lack of sufficient prior data characterizing the region, especially for the shoals, constrained insights into any effect or otherwise of the spill and reinforces the need for regional scale baseline data. These surveys make a significant contribution and an excellent starting point for baseline characterization of the broader suite of emergent reefs and submerged shoal habitats in the Browse Basin.
The Business Case for Process Safety
Authors: Berger Scott
Published: September 2012

Over its 27 year history, the Center for Chemical Process Safety (CCPS) has observed repeatedly that the first step towards implementing a strong process safety management program is obtaining top management commitment to process safety. CCPS has learned that communicating the business case for process safety is an important part of the process of obtaining this commitment. Work conducted by CCPS has demonstrated four key ways that process safety can have positive business benefits. Two of these benefits are qualitative; they can't be measured precisely, but they clearly impact business and financial performance. Two additional benefits are quantitative; they provide financial impact which can be readily identified. All four ways combine to make a compelling case for obtaining top management support for a strong process safety management system. This paper will discuss the four business benefits of process safety, and will include the results of recent investigations.
All Hands on Deck – Ensuring Leaders lead a Safety Culture of Unease
Authors: Kalpee Tyrone
Published: September 2012

Increasing operational and wells activity with two new drilling rigs; significant work on integrity management across offshore and onshore facilities; recruitment of over 200 new members of staff and a 40% change in upper and mid-level leadership over the past two years required BP Trinidad and Tobago (BPTT) to take very proactive steps to protect and embed its significantly improved safety performance.The company has also sought to re-energize its safety culture for the long term to help strengthen safety performance, partly in response to lagging indicators.

Initially improvement in BPTT's personal safety performance was recognized bythe BP Group in 2008 and this was expanded to focus on Process Safetyimprovement. Since that time the company's personal and process safetyperformance continues to be in the top quartile of the BP Upstream in 2012 after being in the fourth quartile up to 2005.

However, over the period of high activity and significant changes at all levels of leadership from late 2010, many safety leading indicators began to show trends of decline. Though not translated into serious injuries, accidents or significant loss of primary containment (LOPC) events, empirical data showed that without decisive action to arrest this decline, serious incidents could occur.
Prevalence of Tuberculosis among Offshore Oil & Gas Workers in Nigeria's Niger Delta by Using the QuantiFERON-TB Gold In-Tube Test-A Preliminary Report
Authors: Bwala John Mark , Iroezindu Israel , Felfernig Michael
Published: September 2012

Following detection of two open tuberculosis (TB) cases among offshore installation workers some years ago, screening for latent TB infection using an interferon gamma release assay, QuantiFERON-TB Gold test (QTBGT), was introduced in the oil industry. Since the introduction of QTBGT, this screening has been used as a prerequisite for working offshore with focus on TB diagnosis (active and latent) and monitoring of clinical management. The aim of our retrospective descriptive study was to determine the prevalence of patients with latent or active TB in offshore workers in Nigeria.

Methods. We used medical records in order to gather all demographic and medical data of patients who underwent QuantiFERON-TB Gold test (QFT-G Cellestis Limited, Carnegie, Victoria, Australia) within a period of 40 month in our facility. Ages, gender, country of origin and test results of the QTBGT were documented. We furthermore evaluated the findings of chest x rays, and compared findings by age and region of origin of the patients.

Results. 2055 workers were screened for tuberculosis infection. 145 patients could not be implemented due to incomplete medical files. Among the remaining 1910 workers tested with QTBGT, 1163 (61%) were negative, 689 (36%) were positive, 43 (2%) had indeterminate results and 15 samples were rejected by the laboratory due to inproper sample handling. In total 2 cases of active tuberculosis were detected. The range of positive samples on different platform ranges from 10 – 50%. 349 of the positive cases were further examined and placed on treatment for latent TB. Out of them 270 (78%) had normal chest x-ray findings; 79 (22%) patients showed hilar shadows. Out of those patients placed on treatment 24 persons were retested in our facilities, 8 did seroconvert to negative while 16 did not, 50% of indeterminate results turned negative on the repeat test.

Conclusion. There was good correlation between our findings and the numbers described in literature reflecting the incidence in other study populations QTBGT test appears to be an good screening tool as a safety measure to mitigate spread of TB among offshore workers; it would be highly beneficial if in-cooperated into pre-employment medicals especially in this region, HIV testing can be offered on voluntary basis to workers with positive QTBGT.
Environmental Impact Assessment of Marine Electromagnetic Survey Techniques
Authors: Tsoflias S. L. , Hutchinson J. , Dandridge C. , Nicholls J. , Henman R. E. , Buchanan R. , Fechhelm R.
Published: September 2012

An environmental impact assessment (EIA) of electromagnetic (EM) survey techniques used for oil and gas exploration in the marine environment was completed and published in November 2011. The EIA was funded by the member companies of the International Association of Geophysical Contractors (IAGC) EM Subcommittee and prepared by an independent environmental consulting company.

EM survey technologies currently utilized offshore use either the Earth's natural electromagnetic field or an induced low-frequency electromagnetic field transmitted by an antenna towed behind a vessel. The electric and magnetic fields are measured and recorded by an array of receivers. To date, these receivers have usually been deployed on the seafloor and then retrieved to process the measurements. Tests are currently being conducted to commercialize a system that tows the receivers underwater behind the vessel, similar to the method used in most marine seismic surveys. The data from EM surveys can help identify differences in the resistivity of subsurface rocks that may be related to the presence of hydrocarbons.

The goal of the EIA was to provide a comprehensive resource summarizing available literature and potential effects of EM technologies on marine life. Designed for a broad audience, the document provides a basic description of EM survey technologies, naturally-occurring EM fields, and the potential use of these fields by diverse animal groups. The assessment focuses on survey activities considered to have at least some potential to affect marine animals, such as EM, noise, light emissions, and accidental events.

The EIA concluded that EM sources as presently used have no potential for significant effects on animal groups such as fish, seabirds, sea turtles, and marine mammals. In addition, cumulative effects from EM surveys are negligible compared to natural EM anomalies, induced fields from natural water currents, and other anthropogenic EM sources such as those originating from permanently installed undersea equipment.
PNG LNG Project Community Engagement Within a Unique and Complex Cultural Environment
Authors: Koyama Sam , Hayes Bruce
Published: September 2012

The scale and extent of the Papua New Guinea LNG Project, compounded by the complex and fractionalized multiethnic composition of the population, presents significant challenges to conventional community engagement.

Construction requires approximately 2,000 ha of land, comprising two large parcels at either end of a 700 km pipeline. These activities impact more than 30,000 people in over 100 communities and many language groups. Resettlement of approximately 400 households in parts of the footprint requires extensive engagement because of the cultural complexity and uniqueness of PNG traditional land tenureship.

Challenges include low literacy levels across much of the Project area and a strong and vibrant oral tradition of storytelling.

An additional challenge for community engagement has been the large scale of construction activities at varying stages of execution with competing priorities for support.

Field personnel work in remote areas promoting engagement using simple tools which have been developed to overcome cultural and education level challenges, as well as taking into account the local population's ability to assimilate information given their strong cultural attachments and entrenched mindsets.

As a result of early engagement experience, it was recognized that this rich cultural diversity would require a flexible approach to community engagement. Traditional engagement approaches and techniques have evolved into more culturally appropriate techniques. This paper addresses the approaches and tools developed by the Project to meet these unique challenges.
Process Safety Management Integrated Into Basic Research and Development
Authors: Serfontein DW (Wynand)
Published: September 2012

Process Safety Management Integrated Into Basic Research and Development

Background

Process safety management (PSM) attempts to prevent major accidents involving large volumes, multiple injuries and significant damage. Laboratory research focuses on small experiments, typically followed by scaling up to bench scale demonstrations, and the successful projects are often optimised on pilot scale. The typical process engineer is not highly involved in the laboratory phase of the research, and the research chemist is seldom involved in the operation of the plant, especially from a process safety perspective. This presentation shows how Sasol Technology R&D integrates these two aspects to allow the R&D phase of the development process to address safety concerns. This enables the design team to introduce safeguards as early as possible in the design.

There are several published examples of major accidents that illustrate where better knowledge of the process could have contributed to preventing the accident. I will use two of these examples to illustrate the development of a set of questions that aim to address the possible problems at the experimental planning stage. The success of such a process could eliminate the need to retrofit solutions to the design.

Sasol Technology R&D uses a Stage-Gate model to plan and evaluate projects. This model evaluates and develops an idea for possible commercialisation in distinct phases. In broad terms, the evaluation points are:

Most of the laboratory work is done in Stage C, which is between Gate B and Gate C. The program that covers Stage C can span years of experimental work, and the team reviews the project continuously during this stage. The Stage-Gate model now contains the PSM-related questions, and allows resource allocation to investigate these aspects.

Consequences of failure

There are many examples in the world where PSM failures caused catastrophic losses to human life, the environment and capital investments. This paper will use two well known examples to highlight where better knowledge could have helped to prevent these accidents. These examples are used as background, and will be discussed in detail, even though they are well known. This is done to make it easy for the reader to follow the arguments derived from the example case studies.
Designing Capability for Offshore Response- A Consultant Perspective
Authors: Barber Lee , Varghese Geeva
Published: September 2012

In different parts of the world, oil spill preparedness and response is approached in different ways. This variance in approach is particularly obvious in the design and development of capability for offshore response. Usually, the rationale behind the offshore capability design may include either of the following methods such as quantitative criteria, qualitative criteria, or a combination of the two as well as prescriptive legal requirements.

From an offshore operator's perspective, the demands for oil spill response capability vary from region to region depending on the requirements of the country they are operating in. The country may have legislation which can be quite prescriptive at times, for example; India, which prescribes a 700 tonne Tier 1 capability, which a lot of the time is not practical for the operator to meet, begging the question – what is the ideal answer?

This paper aims to answer this question, drawing on the wealth of experience gained from dealing with operators, regulators and the industry across the globe. The paper will take a closer look at the different approaches each country adopts for defining oil spill response capability, highlighting the advantages and disadvantages of each. Based on this, the paper aims to present some suggestions for designing and developing a cost effective yet, fit for purpose capability design for the operators and regulators to consider.
Early Progress and Challenges in Assessing Aggregate Sound Exposure and Associated Effects on Marine Mammals
Authors: Streever Bill , Ellison William T. , Frankel Adam S. , Racca Roberto , Angliss Robyn , Clark Christopher , Fleishman Erica , Guerra Melania , Leu Matthias , Oliveira Shirley , Sformo Todd , Southall Brandon , Suydam Robert
Published: September 2012

Most assessments of multiple, interacting, and/or repeated anthropogenic underwater sounds (sometimes considered to be an aspect of cumulative effects assessment) rely on narrative descriptions rather than systematic evaluations. In 2010, recognizing the need to better understand the potential effects of multiple sound sources (such as vessels, drilling rigs, pile drivers and seismic operations), British Petroleum (BP) sponsored the University of California to convene an expert committee tasked with advancing a method of systematic evaluation. The method developed by the committee (1) identifies the species, region, and period to be assessed, (2) compiles data on relevant sound sources for that region and period, (3) models the acoustic footprint of those sources, (4) models the movement of simulated marine mammals (animats) through the acoustic footprint, and (5) aggregates data on sound exposure and movements for each of the simulated animals. The method was applied to a test case or trial loosely based on data from the Alaskan Beaufort Sea during a period of seismic exploration and other activities. Substantial additional work is needed to better define output metrics related to degradation of acoustic habitat and to understand the potential effects of multiple sound sources on individuals and populations. Nevertheless, the method provides a starting point that will lead to improved understanding of the implications of multiple underwater sound sources associated with industrial activities.
Importance of Process Safety Information (PSI) and Implementation of Design Best Practices for Upstream Safety Management Program
Authors: Laskar Sandipan
Published: September 2012

Safe operation and maintenance of emergency systems are of primary importance to the process industries, including upstream oil and gas. One of the critical elements of emergency system is proper documentation and ever greening of the process safety information. Significant time and experience in the onshore process industries, primarily in the downstream sector, have resulted in a robust set of guidelines and specifications for process safety. These best practices have broad applicability to upstream oil and gas, especially for offshore facilities.

In particular, the pressure relief system is an integral part of upstream design and operation; prevention of an accidental release of toxic, flammable or noxious materials from a production facility requires correct design and construction, safe operation, and proper documentation of this system.

In practice, relief system design and documentation for upstream production facilities and downstream refining or chemical facilities is quite similar. In fact, API RP 75 mirrors the requirements of the United States Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration's safety standard entitled "Process Safety Management of Highly Hazardous Chemicals" (29 CFR 1910.119)- which is applicable to qualifying onshore facilities (PSM). This paper aims to debunk any notion that upstream oil and gas is fundamentally different by providing comparative data from numerous relief system design studies for upstream and downstream facilities showing similar classes of deficiencies. This paper proposes a basic change in the way relief systems are documented - a requirement in order to comply with 29 CFR 1910.119 and thereby describes a new methodology and a change in documentation to meet OSHA requirements and other industry standards (such as API 520/521, API-RP 75, 14J).

The paper will assist upstream facility personnel to utilize good engineering practice in design and documentation of safety relief systems, to meet both onshore and offshore process safety requirements, and to develop consistent company best practices for process safety management. In addition to the comparative data, the paper will describe a comprehensive equipment based analysis protocol, preparation of documentation sufficient for design, operational, and audit purposes, and discuss maintenance both of the physical system and design data.
Improving Reservoir Monitoring in EOR Environments Using Microdeformation-Based Technologies
Authors: Marsic Scott , Roadarmel William , Machovoe Mike , Davis Eric
Published: September 2012

Nearly every reservoir-level process generates and propagates outward a pattern of strain that can be detected using sensitive deformation-monitoring technologies. Microdeformation monitoring seeks to precisely detect and characterize strain patterns caused by fluid production and injection, thermal process such as steam flooding, cyclic steam stimulation (CSS), and steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD), as well as CO2 Sequestration (CCS). By solving a geophysical inverse problem, well-characterized strain measurements can be used to identify and illustrate reservoir-level changes on a wide variety of spatial and temporal scales. Bringing surface deformation measurements down to the reservoir level to obtain the fluid migration pathways, volumetric strain, pressure fronts, or thermal fronts allows operators and asset managers to improve their understanding of how different storage and recovery methods work in different types of reservoirs at significant cost savings compared to traditional monitoring technologies.

A variety of independent yet complimentary technologies currently exist that allow a complete and accurate characterization of ground deformation patterns required to geomechanically invert for reservoir-level processes. Examples of recent work from California's thermal enhanced oil recovery (EOR) environments using tiltmeters, GPS, and interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) are highlighted and discussed, showing how the microdeformation process has been employed to improve production surveillance and project operations.
Identifying Vulnerability Markers for Pathological Internet Use and Pathological Video-Game Playing within an Educational Context
Authors: Hinvest Neal , Brosnan Mark
Published: September 2012

Information Communication Technology (ICT) is established within the education systems of most of the industrialized world, across the curriculum and across all ages. Learners, especially younger cohorts, are highly motivated to use ICT within their learning due to their familiarity with technology. However, before integrating any technology into students' learning experience, educators must ask themselves what are the expected outcomes of using such technology? Educators must also be aware that there exists a minority of individuals who are vulnerable to developing addictions toward various technologies and that usage of technology within the classroom may exacerbate this addiction. This article reviews the literature investigating the efficacy of using technology within the classroom. It also provides a review of research investigating addiction to technology with a special focus on vulnerability markers, so that those who are vulnerable can be identified. Finally, the article makes some recommendations to educators who wish to incorporate ICT within their classes.
Principles for planning and conducting comparative effectiveness research
Authors: Luce Bryan R , Drummond Michael F , Dubois Robert W , Neumann Peter J , Jönsson Bengt , Siebert Uwe , Schwartz J Sanford
Published: September 2012

Aims:
To develop principles for planning and conducting comparative effectiveness research (CER).
Methods:
Beginning with a modified existing list of health technology assessment principles, we developed a set of CER principles using literature review, engagement of multiple experts and broad stakeholder feedback.
Results & conclusion:
Thirteen principles and actions to fulfill their intent are proposed. Principles include clarity of objectives, transparency, engagement of stakeholders, consideration of relevant perspectives, use of relevant comparators, and evaluation of relevant outcomes and treatment heterogeneity. Should these principles be found appropriate and useful, CER studies should be audited for adherence to them and monitored for their impact on care management, patient relevant outcomes and clinical guidelines.
Treatment pattern by hormone receptors and HER2 status in patients with metastatic breast cancer in the UK, Germany, France, Spain and Italy (EU-5): results from a physician survey
Authors: DeKoven Mitch , Bonthapally Vijayveer , Jiao Xiaolong , Ganguli Arijit , Pathak Prathamesh , Lee Won Chan , Ray Saurabh
Published: September 2012

Background:
The differences in country-specific treatment patterns across Europe for metastatic breast cancer (mBC) patients have not been extensively studied. This study compared the treatment choices in aggregate, as well as by biomarker status, between various lines of therapy in clinical practice in the EU-5 countries among newly diagnosed mBC patients.
Materials & methods:
The IMS LifeLink™ Oncology Analyzer database, based on surveys of practicing oncologists, was used to identify mBC patients aged ≥21 years. In this database, sample-level data are projected to national-level estimates for each country using a sample projection technique.
Results:
The prevalence of hormone receptors (71–74%) is quite similar across different countries, while HER2 overexpression varies from 22 (France) to 34% (Italy); chemotherapy combined with HER2-targeted medicine was the mainstay of treatment for HER2
+
patients. The use of HER2-targeted medicine and bevacizumab greatly varied: while they were most frequently used in France, they were least frequently used in the UK. Fewer treatment options existed for triple-negative patients and patients with HER2
+
disease following trastuzumab treatment. Chemotherapy was the treatment choice for triple-negative patients, as these patients do not respond to hormonal therapy and HER2-targeted medicine.
Conclusion:
This study found that, while a trastuzumab-based regimen is the preferred option for treating HER2
+
mBC patients in the EU-5, variations in this personalized medicine approach exist between different EU-5 countries. However, fewer treatment options exist for triple-negative and HER2
+
patients after trastuzumab treatment, highlighting the unmet need for these patient subgroups.