Russia (bbabo.net), - The oil spill in Norilsk last year, the accident at the BP oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico and other high-profile incidents create the impression that the greatest harm to the environment is caused by oil production and transportation. In fact, this is not at all the case, just the consequences of oil spills can be seen immediately, visually demonstrating the scale of the ecological disaster.

Today, the greatest concern in terms of environmental friendliness is caused by the transportation of coal, said Valery Andrianov, associate professor of the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation. This problem has existed for more than a decade, but now, against the background of tightening climate policy and calls from a number of countries to completely abandon the use of coal, it has become especially acute.

"Black Snow" - the air saturated with coal dust around the largest coal terminals - alas, one of the sad symbols of environmental problems that persist in the fuel and energy complex (FEC). Fires occur periodically in coal ports - for example, in October, such a fire occurred in the port of Vanino, which, by the way, is considered a port with high environmental standards, the expert notes.

In the fall of 2021, the Ministry of Natural Resources introduced a bill to the government on toughening liability for violation of environmental standards when handling coal in ports. It is supposed to introduce fines for stevedores (an official, a representative of the port administration on the ship, responsible for loading) for violation of environmental requirements in the amount of up to 600 thousand rubles. The question was also raised about a complete ban on open transshipment of coal in ports. The option of setting higher railway tariffs for the transportation of coal to ports with open transshipment is also being considered.

On the other hand, the accident of a ship carrying coal will not cause much harm to the environment. When coal gets into the water, no chemical reaction occurs. But the consequences after an accident of an oil tanker, train or ship carrying liquefied natural gas (LNG) will be much more serious. In the first case, it is an oil spill. On land, and even more so on the water surface, the damage from it can amount to billions (BP paid $ 13.5 billion for the accident in the Gulf of Mexico). In the case of LNG, this is the release of large amounts of methane into the atmosphere. If the LNG tank is depressurized and the gas enters the water, it instantly evaporates. Even cold water (4 degrees) is very hot relative to the boiling point of LNG (it exceeds it by 160 degrees Celsius). The worst scenario is if the vaporizing gas ignites. Fortunately, there have been no such accidents yet, and the scale of the disaster can only be modeled.

The sphere of production and transportation of liquefied natural gas, despite its relative "youth" in comparison with the coal industry, is well regulated at the international level, Andrianov notes. There are international standards for the construction and operation of tankers for the transport of LNG, concerning, in particular, the requirements for the hull - it must be double and have an inter-hull space. This avoids gas leakage in the event of a leak in one of the housings. There are also stringent requirements for cargo insulation, temperature and pressure regulation, fire protection, etc. Calculations show that the contribution of the LNG transportation stage to the formation of the total hydrocarbon footprint of this type of fuel is minimal, the expert specifies.

As for the transportation of oil through pipelines, today in Russia this issue is more organizational than technological. There are many technologies available to help both avoid accidents with environmental damage and reduce the carbon footprint when pumping raw materials.

But for the widespread introduction of such technologies, firstly, investments in the comprehensive modernization of pipeline networks are needed, and secondly, full transparency of the hydrocarbon transportation system, Andrianov believes. In his opinion, due to the unsatisfactory state of the infrastructure, leaks on field oil pipelines periodically occur.

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