DE-FC26-01NT41248 (Task 3.05.4)

Goals
The project goals are to:

• Provide practical methodologies to quantify the recharge capacity of specific lakes utilizing classical water-balance techniques combined with state-of-the-art modeling and remote-sensing analyses.
• Reduce future adverse environmental impacts by defining under what conditions such techniques (or adaptations of these techniques) may be safely applied.
• Characterize the sustainability of water use under conditions of both continuous and winter-only water removals.
• Expand the existing data-collection network to characterize the spatial variation in rain and snow precipitation, lake evaporation, and evapotranspiration at strategic locations in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska and Kuparuk River, Prudhoe Bay, Milne Point, and Badami oilfields to provide spatial coverage of meteorological and hydrological information. Current data from real-time reporting sites are available at http://www.uaf.edu/water/projects/nsl/stations.html
• Develop example watershed operational maps identifying permitted lakes with supporting watershed areas to enable quantitative and justifiable permit volumes.
• Develop forecast models to predict available (potential) recharge water to use for ongoing permit activities in areas where adequate digital terrain data exists.

Performers
University of Alaska-Fairbanks Water and Environmental Research Center, Fairbanks, AK
Geo-Watersheds Scientific, Fairbanks, AK
BP Exploration (Alaska) Inc., Anchorage, AK
ConocoPhillips Alaska, Inc., Anchorage, AK
Bureau of Land Management, Fairbanks, AK
Alaska Department of Natural Resources, Anchorage and Fairbanks, AK
Northern Alaska Environmental Center, Fairbanks, AK
The Nature Conservancy, Anchorage, AK

Results
Current project results include the following discoveries:

• Winter water use has not been found to cause any adverse impacts with current water use levels.
• Vertical differences exist in the water column of lakes during ice-cover conditions.
• Ice chips should be moved from under-ice water extraction volume permitting limits.
• Annual water-use permit periods should use a water-year period (October-September).

Project reports are available online at http://www.uaf.edu/water/projects/nsl/reports.html.

Benefits
Ongoing research has resulted in immediate and valuable benefits to industry and to State and Federal agencies by providing a quantitative measurement of the effects of the current levels of water use from North Slope lakes. This research is generating water-management tools to help improve the process of estimating available water for various uses and providing a proactive approach for evaluating water-use permits and needs. Through the close involvement of industry, agency, and environmental partners, the expected outcome will also yield a more uniform and predictable permitting environment. The modeling tools will help determine reasonable water-use limits based on watershed areas, specific lake capacity, and recharge potential. It will also include model tool components for estimating geochemical impacts of natural lakes freezing and water use. Although characteristic hydrological parameters will need to be determined, it is expected that this approach will be broadly applicable across Alaska and for future development efforts. It will also apply to the many rural communities depending on lakes for their water supplies.

Background
For many years, the oil industry and support services have built ice roads and pads for increased access to remote sites with decreased maintenance costs. This technique is quite important to the oil industry in that it allows oilfield development or maintenance while avoiding the environmental disturbance associated with construction of gravel roads and pads. Numerous questions have been raised regarding the potential environmental consequences of winter pumping of water from tundra lakes for these ice roads and pads.

Summary
The Phase 1 portion of the project revealed that chemical and physical impacts of mid-winter pumping were undetectable at the current accepted levels of water removal; however, at present, no standards exist to guide industry and agencies in selecting reasonable limits on water removal. How to assess year-round facility water uses and verify long-term impacts associated with water use remains an issue in North Slope field operations. Considering the potential for changing baseline conditions, cumulative impact evaluations will need to rely on process understanding as well as data collection over the period of field activities. Guidelines and analysis tools are needed to enable planning for exploration and construction efforts and to ensure adequate environmental protection.

Current Status (April 2007)
The project has a year and half left. Ongoing data collection is being used to continue the development of new water-use management tools. Ongoing project results are being adopted by industry and agencies to continue to improve water management and availability on the North Slope.

Funding
This project was awarded under DOE solicitation number DE-FC26-01NT41248.

Project Start: May 1, 2005
Project End: September 30, 2008

Anticipated DOE Contribution: $1,231,438
Performer Contribution: $2,125,000 (64.7 percent of total)

Contact Information
NETL – James Hemsath (james.hemsath@netl.doe.gov or 907-452-2672)
UAF – Dan White (ffdmw@uaf.edu or 907-474-6222)
Geo-Watersheds Scientific – Michael Lilly (mlilly@gwscientific.com or 907-479-8891)

Publications
Derry, J., Reichardt, D., Lilly, M.R., Cherry, J., and Clilverd, H., “Lake chemistry and physical data for selected North Slope, Alaska, lakes,” February 2007, University of Alaska-Fairbanks, Water and Environmental Research Center, Report INE/WERC 07.07, Fairbanks, AK.

Lilly, M.R., Reichardt, D., and Derry, J., 2007, “Kuparuk Deadarm Reservoirs, Cells 1-3 Water-Level Observations,” North Slope Lakes Project Hydrologic Notes, February 15, 2007, Water and Environmental Research Center, University of Alaska-Fairbanks.

Lilly, M.R., and Reichardt, D.A., “Lake L9312 Water Levels, Monthly Water-Use and Cumulative Annual Permit Accounting,” North Slope Lakes Project Hydrologic Notes, January 13, 2007, Water and Environmental Research Center, University of Alaska-Fairbanks, AK.

Hinzman, L.D., Lilly, M.R., Kane, D.L., Miller, D.D., Galloway, B.K., Hilton, K.M., and White, D.M., “Physical and Chemical Implications of Mid-Winter Pumping of Tundra Lakes—North Slope, Alaska,” December 2006, Water and Environmental Research Center, University of Alaska-Fairbanks, Report INE/WERC 06.15, Fairbanks, AK.

Hilton, K.M., Chambers, M.K., and Lilly, M.R., “Lake Chemistry and Physical Data For Selected North Slope, Alaska, Lakes: November 2005,” August 2006, Water and Environmental Research Center, University of Alaska-Fairbanks, Report INE/WERC 06.02, Fairbanks, AK.

Nolan, M.A., “An Annotated Bibliography of Research Related to the Possible Long-Term Impacts of Pumping Water from Tundra Ponds for the Creation of Ice Roads,” February 2005, Water and Environmental Research Center, University of Alaska-Fairbanks.

Lilly, M.R., and White, D.M., “Physical and Chemical Characteristics of Alaskan North Slope Lakes, and Variations Due To Water Use: 2005 Phase-2 Project Update,” WERC-Fact Sheet-05-01, August 26, 2005, Water and Environmental Research Center, University of Alaska-Fairbanks.

Lilly, M.R., and Hinzman, L.D.,. “Physical, Biological, and Chemical Implications of Mid-Winter Pumping of Tundra Lakes,” WERC-Fact Sheet-03-01, July 28, 2003, Water and Environmental Research Center, University of Alaska-Fairbanks.

Example water use allocation showing benefit of treating grounded ice removal volumes separately from under-ice water removal. Shallow lakes on the North Slope will lock up large percentages of available water as ice during the winter period. End-of-winter conditions are the main regulatory management focus, to help protect fisheries resources

Example water use from lake L9312, serving the Alpine facility, showing cumulative use based on calendar year and water year. Water levels represent a lack of spring snowmelt flooding from the Colville River in 2005 and flooding in 2006. In 2006, excess water is on the lake throughout the summer period into fall freeze-up