The fate of oil-based drilling muds at two artificial island sites in the Beaufort Sea

Abstract

From the Abstract: “The fate of low aromatic content base oil discharged from two artificial island exploratory well sites in the Beaufort Sea…was studied over a 2-year period. At Minuk I-53, a sacrificial beach island in 14 m of water, base oil could not be detected in surface sediments immediately after drilling outside of an extensive area of grounded ice rubble surrounding the island. Vista oil, however, was widely dispersed in surface sediments a the end of the following open water season…”