reef effect | Bud's Offshore Energy (BOE)

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John Smith’s proposal to facilitate the decommissioning of California platforms

Posted in California, decommissioning, Offshore Energy - General, Regulation, rigs-to-reefs, tagged Calfornia, decommissioning, Jeremy Claisse, John B Smith, Milt Love, offshore platforms, proposed regulation change, reef effect on April 23, 2026| 1 Comment »

*^{Looking up towards Platform Gilda from a depth of 100 feet, juvenile bocaccio rockfish swirl around the anemone-covered crossbeams (photo by Dr. Milton Love)}*

Dr. Jeremy Claisse, Cal Poly Pomona: “The oil and gas platforms off the coast of California are the most productive marine habitats per unit area in the world.”

Dr. Milt Love, UCSB: “Even the least productive platform was more productive than Chesapeake Bay or a coral reef in Moorea.”

John Smith has made the case for reefing California platforms. He is now proposing a change in the regulations that could facilitate such partial removals of offshore structures. His full proposal is attached.

As background John notes:

“In contrast to the Gulf of Mexico (GOM), where more than 600 decommissioned platforms have been converted to artificial reefs, the State of California does not have reefing legislation considered workable by industry, nor does it have an approved or State funded artificial reefing program which is a prerequisite under MMA (formerly BSEE and BOEM) OCS oil and gas regulations (30 CFR § 250.1730) for waiving platform removal requirements which allows conversion of the structure to an artificial reef.“

He further informs that “operators of the platforms have not expressed any serious interest in reefing OCS platform jackets because they consider the California Marine Resources Legacy Act unworkable in its present form due primarily to its liability provisions, inequitable 80% cost-savings sharing requirement, and the requirement for the first reefing applicant to fund the setup costs for the artificial reefing program.“

John’s proposal is intriguing because it allows qualified 3rd parties to accept title and liability for reefed structures. This would create interesting business opportunities. A company, consortium, nonprofit, or entrepreneur could, for a fee, acquire submerged structures and obtain insurance or other financial protection in accordance with their business plan. Reef preservation and enhancement studies, and other marine research could also be conducted at the sites. Marine ecosystems would be protected, and the cost and efficiency of decommissioning operations would be significantly improved.

“So, you disconnect the jacket… you kill all the fish. There’s an awful lot of animals that die,” said Dr. Love. As our world has become dependent on fossil fuels, so too have these millions of animals become dependent on the structures that pump them from beneath the sea floor. “As a biologist, I just give people the facts, but I have my own view as a citizen, which is I think it’s criminal to kill huge numbers of animals,” said Dr. Love.

John’s proposal warrants serious consideration.

Revised Proposal to Amend MMA OCS Decom Regs 042126.docx Download

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John Smith Makes the Case for Reefing California Platforms

Posted in California, climate, decommissioning, energy policy, Offshore Energy - General, Regulation, tagged air emissions, BOEM, California, decommissioning, HHS platforms, John B Smith, offshore platforms, reef effect on April 16, 2026| Leave a Comment »

The Case for Reefing California Platforms by John Smith

Environmental groups like the Environmental Defense Center and Get Oil Out continue to oppose converting the jackets of California oil and gas platforms to artificial reefs despite scientific studies (Claisse et al. 2014) showing “oil and gas platforms off the coast of California have the highest secondary fish production per unit area of seafloor of any marine habitat that
has been studied.”

Another important factor environmental groups and the 2023 BOEM Programmatic EIS for Decommissioning failed to consider and acknowledge is the huge amount of air emissions that would be released by world-class heavy lift vessels like the Thialf or Balder Semi-submersible Crane Vessels (SSCVs) that would be required to safely and efficiently remove the large federal OCS platforms like Harvest, Hermosa, and Hidalgo (HHH). The HHH platforms are in waters depths ranging from 430-675 feet and have combined deck and jacket weights ranging from 20,000 – 25,000 tons. In comparison, the wrought iron structure of the Eiffel Tower weighs about 8,000 tons.

The SSCVs and accompanying Anchor Handling Tugs (AHTs) used to remove the HHH platforms will likely to be mobilized from distant locations like the North Sea or Gulf of America where they typically operate. Because SSCVs like the Thialf and Balder are too large to enter the Panama Canal, this would involve a 20,000 nautical mile roundtrip voyage around the tip of South America.

Three to four campaigns, and separate SSCV and AHT mobilizations and demobilizations, are projected to be required to fully remove the HHH platforms because the challenging oceanographic conditions offshore Point Arguello restrict heavy lift operations to a 150-day period between May and October.

Four campaigns by the SSCV and AHT would consume about 300,000 metric tons (mt) of marine diesel oil and release approximately 470,000 mt of CO2 and 11,000 mt of NOX emissions. To put these numbers into context, 470,000 mt of CO2 and 11,000 mt of NOX are:

the amount of CO2 emissions released by providing electrical power to 97,600 homes annually (the city of Santa Barbara has about 38,000 housing units).
the amount of CO2 emissions released by burning 1.1 million barrels of oil.
the amount of CO2 emissions released by 102,000 gasoline burning cars annually.
the amount of NOX emissions released by four large oil or coal-fired power plants annually.
the total annual NOX emissions in Santa Barbara County.

And this is only the emissions released during mobilization and demobilization of the SSCV and AHT. If full removal is required, an additional 50 days of operational time by the SSCV and AHT is estimated to be required to remove the topside and jacket of each HHH platform. This could be reduced to about 15 days per platform if the jackets are converted to artificial reefs. Only one SSCV and AHT campaign may be required if the HHH jackets are reefed, compared to the four campaigns required for the full removal scenario. This would result in a 75 percent reduction in CO2 and NOX emissions.

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NOAA EIS’s assess Gulf and Pacific aquaculture, but don’t consider the potential for synergy with existing platforms.

Posted in decommissioning, energy policy, Gulf of Mexico, rigs-to-reefs, tagged aquaculture, Gulf of America, Jeremy Claisse, Milt Love, NOAA, Pacific, reef effect, Rigs to Roe, Santa Barbara Channel on September 30, 2025| Leave a Comment »

NOAA is touting marine aquaculture and has published Programmatic Environmental Impact Statements for Aquaculture Opportunity Areas (AOAs) in the Gulf of America and offshore Southern California. This is a positive step.

While the focus of these EIS documents is on distinct AOAs separated from oil and gas facilities, NOAA might also have discussed the potential for synergy with existing platforms. The reef effect of platforms can be sustained and new fishery ventures supported by converting older platforms to aquaculture facilities (Rigs-to-Roe/Redfish/Rockfish) rather than decommissioning them.

The ecological importance of offshore platforms has been well documented in both the Gulf and Santa Barbara Channel Channel area.

According to a paper published in 2014 by marine ecologist Dr. Jeremy Claisse of Cal Poly Pomona, the oil and gas platforms off the coast of California are the most productive marine habitats per unit area in the world. “Even the least productive platform was more productive than Chesapeake Bay or a coral reef in Moorea,” said Dr. Love. (Milt Love, UCSB biologist)