Technology Cooperation and Capacity Building - CommDev

TECHNOLOGY COOPERATION AND CAPACITY BUILDINGCase Study OneAmoco in Western SiberiaCooperation between US and Russian enterprises ishelping identify means of revegetating areas of Siberia.This effort is part of a broader programme to repairdamage that occurred during past Soviet era developmentof oil and gas resources.The partners● Amoco Production Company● Nadym Gasprom● Komi Research Institute● Institute of Agriculture of the Northern Urals● US and Russian scientistsYamalPeninsulaSalekhardUrengoyWesternSiberiaOver the past five years, many oil and gas companies havebeen investigating investment in the former Soviet Union. Aprime area of interest has been Western Siberia, an area richin proven oil and gas reserves but lacking capital and thetechnical assistance needed to bring major fields intoproduction. Since 1989 Amoco Production Company hasbeen investigating the economic potential for oil and gasdevelopment in the Yamal Peninsula region of north-westernSiberia. Located above the Arctic Circle, the area ischaracterized by long cold winters, short cool summers andis underlain by permafrost. The vegetation is typically lowgrowing shrubs and forbs. Native reindeer herders have usedthe area for centuries, pasturing vast herds in the tundra inthe summer and returning to the forested areas in the winter.From field visits and discussions with community leaders andregulatory officials, it was determined that terrain damageand erosion associated with earlier exploration anddevelopment activities was a major environmental concern.Revegetating disturbed areasSurface vegetation acts as an insulating barrier between thesurface and permafrost layers in the Arctic and sub-Arctic,protecting the latter from thawing during warm periods. Inthe summer, heavy vehicles destroy this vegetation and thescars of military and industrial movements have beenrecorded in the tundra over many years. Much was learntabout this phenomenon, and about how to rectify andprevent it, in Canada and Alaska during the 1970s and 1980s.Russian scientists have also been conducting studies intomethods of reclaiming disturbed areas in sub-Arctic regionsbut have only recently begun studies in the more severeArctic. Studies have included species and seed mix trialsusing locally available native species. Some species have beenplaced into seed increase programmes on the basis ofrelatively short-term data, but few have gone through arigorous selection process.Revegetation trials in the North American Arctic havebeen under way since 1968 and have included species, seedmix and soil nutrient testing. Two important areas for testinghave been Prudhoe Bay in Alaska and the TuktoyaktukPeninsula in the Northwest Territories of Canada. Bothareas are at about the same latitude as the Yamal and have asimilar climatic regime. A significant difference is soiltexture: the Yamal is sandy compared to the silty clay soils of18