China’s permafrost damaged by oil pipelines could trigger ‘environmental disaster’, study warns
- Pipeline mega project carrying heated crude oil is gradually degrading large areas of permafrost, increasing geohazard risks, scientists say
The parallel CRCOP I and II (China-Russia Crude Oil Pipelines) run mostly underground across hundreds of kilometres of permafrost and seasonally frozen ground. But to transport crude oil across a frigid environment, the liquid hydrocarbons must be kept at a temperature above freezing point.
According to researchers, that is becoming a problem.
Over time, the warmer pipeline oil has thawed the upper layer of the permafrost it runs through in northern China. The resulting degradation to the permafrost could lead to geohazards and environmental disasters, a new study has found.
“As a persistent heat source, it continuously releases heat into the surrounding permafrost, leading to permafrost thawing, surface subsidence, surface ponding, pipeline settlement, possible failures or oil spills, and possibly future environmental disasters,” the research team led by scientists at the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences wrote.