The Barents Sea is a unique and undisturbed ecosystem
In the Barents Sea the cold, nutrient-rich artic currents meet the warm southern currents creating the ideal conditions for massive plankton growth. This is the basis for a hugely productive marine food web. Norway’s most important commercial fish species spawn and grow to adulthood in the sensitive, scenic and vulnerable Lofoten and Barents Sea areas, creating the base for the largest fisheries in Europe.

Many of Norway’s rare and vulnerable bird species also feed and breed in this same area, including 400.000 breeding pairs of puffin on Gjesværstappan – which is close to the Eni owned Goliath oil field. The Barents Sea also harbours rare artic bottom communities, coral reefs and acts as a spawning ground for many Arctic and Atlantic fish stocks. A well functioning ecosystem is thus required for the diverse, natural resource use conducted by local communities in this region.

Eni wants to drill for oil in the Barents Sea
In December 2003 the Norwegian government controversially re-opened licences allowing exploratory drilling in the Barents Sea. Eni was granted a drilling license for the Goliath Field off Gjesværstappan in the Barents Sea. Drilling may commence September 2005, after the fish-spawning season. Attempts to drill in 2004 failed due to rig availabilities and political resistance.

Oil activities are extremely risky in the Barents arctic environment
The low temperatures in the area make the ecosystem vulnerable. All biological processes are slow, and recovery of nature takes long after pollution incidents. The harsh environment of the Barents Sea, particularly during the long dark period and strong winds in winter, makes operation and mitigation of accidents difficult. If a major oil spill happens in November, it may be impossible to see what really is going on before the end of February when the sun rises again.

Valuable areas for biodiversity conservation will be threatened
The Goliath site lies slightly west of North Cape and is very close to the shore. It is the only discovery of oil thus far worth exploiting in the Norwegian part of the Barents Sea. Goliath is only 60 km from the large seabird cliff colony "Gjesværstappan", with some 400.000 breeding puffins (second largest in Norway) and other seabird species. Under normal weather conditions, an oil spill would with likelihood as high as 50 % reach Gjesværs¬tappan within 32 hours, according to oil industry estimates. In addition, many more of the largest seabird cliff colonies (cormorant, shag, kittiwake, puffin, guillemot and more) of Europe are found along the entire coast of Finnmark, as well as important moulting areas. Goliath is placed in the middle of an important migration corridor for marine species in the Barents Sea, and also constitutes a key feeding area for many marine bird species all year, due to the fish diversity and abundance. All scientific evidence points to the fact that this sensitive area should be protected rather than exploited for oil and gas.

An integrated management plan is under development
In recognition of the fact that this ecosystem is so valuable, yet fragile and threatened, the Norwegian parliament has decided to establish an Integrated Management Plan for the Barents Sea and Lofoten area, to decide how best to utilise these areas in the future and how to best combine oil and gas extraction, fisheries and shipping within the environ¬mental and ecological restrictions required for long-term ecosystem maintenance. This plan should include definitions of zones and areas that will be permanently closed for petroleum activities, as well as strong measures to control shipping and regulate fisheries. This integrated management plan will be finalised and decided upon by the Parliament in 2006. In this perspective, any oil exploration activities in the Barents Sea, especially on the coastal Goliath field, are risky, undemocratic and environmentally unsound.

Conclusion