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Energy and the Arctic communities The 2015 Arctic Energy Summit highlighted best practices, research needs and potential projects relating to energy in the north ALAN BAILEY Petroleum News
While both reaping benefits and facing challenges from energy development, Arctic communities worry about their energy security and about the impact of development on their way of life. In September 2015 400 participants from 14 nations met in Fairbanks, Alaska, for the Arctic Energy Summit, an event held every two years to discuss energy issues that impact people living in Arctic regions. The Institute of the North has recently published an executive summary report of the summit.
According to the report, Arctic energy development must both respond to the needs of local communities and consider the global implications of activity in the Arctic. Human security in the Arctic depends on numerous factors, many of which are impacted by resource development. And, while companies and government regulators need to carefully consider development decisions, there should be a focus on maximizing the benefits for local communities while also eliminating the risks to those communities, some of which have traditional, subsistence-based economies, the report says.
Sustainable development The availability of energy, balanced with environmental protections and respect for traditional ways of living, is crucial to sustainable human development and economic development. And, although there is a need for diversification in the means of power generation in the Arctic, the development of diesel and end-user technology has more short-term importance to rural communities than the development of alternative energy sources, the report says.
At the same time, a wide array of new energy production, storage and transfer technologies target improvements to the current energy infrastructure. While these new developments would enable the introduction of a wide variety of power sources, it is typically challenging to know how to stabilize a power system while integrating new technologies, with systems being unique to remote communities, the report says.
Best practices Presentations and discussions during the summit identified a number of best practices for energy development and supply situations that impact Arctic communities. These best practices include support for the exchange of information between and among communities and government agencies, and the early solicitation of community input to decision making and planning. Policy incentives should be tailored to promote private investment, with clear metrics for making investment decisions, consistent with the public interest. Traditional knowledge should complement western science, with the sharing of scientific results with impacted residents and communities, the report says.
Effective communications strategies can include the use of local languages and the designation and training of community or regional energy planners. Pilot energy projects can bring immediate benefits to communities. Climate change scenarios need to be incorporated into management decision making. And the establishment of sovereign wealth funds, where possible, can signal long-term confidence in a region and its inhabitants, the report says.
Research gaps In terms of gaps in current research efforts, summit participants expressed concern over how indigenous people can find a place at the table in the regulatory environment - questions were raised over the need for more research into the challenges and opportunities arising from hybrid governance and governance fragmentation when it comes to Arctic cooperation and decision making. More investigation is needed into the potential benefits to communities from resource development projects and the cultural impact of project funding flowing into communities. And what are the relative roles of local, state and federal funding, and of private capital, when it comes to Arctic energy projects?
Further research is also needed into the impacts of climate change on Arctic ecosystems and communities, the report says.
Potential projects Potential projects that could usefully be carried out include an assessment of the economic impact on coastal communities and maritime economies of increased offshore energy production; the development of a network of community project champions to share best practices in the use of renewable energy technologies and energy efficiency; the development of a best practices guide for access to energy education and literature; and the identification of and investment in regional hubs that have expertise and infrastructure to address specialized issues such as the use of micro-grids or centralized heating systems, the report says.
The final day of the summit focused on two major issues: the use of renewable energy sources coupled with energy efficiency, and the interaction between the oil and gas industry and Arctic communities. Discussions raised a large number of points in terms of best practices, research gaps and potential projects.
Renewables and energy efficiency
When it comes to the implementation of renewable energy sources and making improvements in energy efficiency in Arctic communities, findings from the summit emphasize the need for effective planning and the engagement of communities in projects. There needs to be an emphasis on long-term sustainability, with the training of local residents in the maintenance of energy systems. It is also important to address energy efficiency before implementing larger scale projects, the report says.
Research gaps include a need for a better understanding of the relative roles of private and government investment in renewable energy projects, and for a better understanding of the impact of community energy projects on social, cultural and health issues. Potential projects include the formation of a forum to share best practices and standardization for off-grid utilities; a demonstration of high-penetration hybrid systems involving a combination of wind, solar, diesel and power storage in remote micro-grids; and the mapping out of renewable energy resources in the Arctic.
Oil and gas development From the perspective of Arctic oil and gas development, the forum emphasized the important of community consultation and engagement in what is going on, with early discussions to prevent conflict, the availability of “digestible” technical information and the incorporation of indigenous knowledge into project planning. There needs to be cooperation among multiple stakeholders, including corporations, indigenous communities and local government in the development of regulations, with an adaptive, integrated and ecosystem based approach, informed by science, when it comes to regulatory systems. Regulatory standards should be performance based, rather than prescriptive. And climate based scenarios should be incorporated into planning, the report says.
Further research is needed into oil spills and occupational health, and into Arctic incident response. Analysis is needed into the costs and benefits of oil and gas development for communities. Further scientific investigation could be conducted into the geoscience of Arctic basins and into the mobility of sea ice. There is also scope to assess the difference between different countries’ incomes from oil and gas lease sales and those countries’ incomes from individual taxes. And there could usefully be an investigation into how regulatory regimes can help improve the telecommunications infrastructure and deepwater ports in the Arctic, the report says.
Potential initiatives in the oil and gas arena include the development of conflict avoidance agreements between the oil industry and subsistence activities; the identification of community projects through which the oil industry can mitigate its community impacts; and increased community-based monitoring and information exchange. Further technical improvements could be made to Arctic satellite coverage and Arctic weather and ice forecasting.
In addition, the creation of an Arctic Council forum for communication in the Arctic, for the sharing of data and information, and for training, including education in the new Polar Code for Arctic shipping, would prove beneficial, the report says.
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