Industrial Hazards during Massive Production of Hydrocarbons: the Analysis of Situation and Recommendations

Industrial hazards arising during the development of mega-reservoir hydrocarbon accumulations due to their enrichment with industrially significant and often potentially toxic microelements, including radioactive, have been considered. Such hazards are most relevant for the fields of hard-to-recover reserves of heavy, highly viscous vanadium-bearing oils, accumulations of natural bitumen, and hydrocarbons of poorly permeable shale formations. For the development of hydrocarbon resources located in complex geological conditions, it is required to ensure industrial safety as the risk of transfer of potentially toxic elements into the environment and damage to human health increases significantly with the thermal effects on the formation and hydraulic fracturing of shale formations. During shale hydrocarbon production, strong induced seismicity occurs quite often. At the same time, even relatively weak earthquakes occurring in previously aseismic areas, in the absence of anti-seismic reinforcements of structures and on soft soils, can cause noticeable damage. To reduce possible damage, the «Semaphore» technique is usually applied. As demonstrated, the hazard assessment of induced seismicity may be both underestimated and overestimated. The processes discussed significantly complicate ensuring industrial safety. The purpose of the study is to develop recommendations to reduce geo-environmental risk.