Satellite Environmental Monitoring of Oil Spills in the South Gulf Of Mexico

Abstract PEMEX Exploration and Production have been using a progressive application of RADARSAT-1 satellite in Campeche Bay for offshore oil slick detection with ancillary and meteo oceanographic calibration since 2000. A multiyear monitoring program has been in progress combining successfully its results with oil spill modelers and GIS for complementary support in environmental issues. Introduction An oil seep report from a fisherman was the origin of Cantarell, the biggest Mexican oil field located on the Campeche Bay, in the Southern Gulf of Mexico. Nowadays, PEMEX Exploration and Production (PEP) share their operational marine area with a high activity of natural oil seeps (Figure 1), as well as with important vessel traffic related to fisheries or industrial transport. Nevertheless, any oil record on the sea or on the beaches of this area is immediately related to PEP activities or facilities generating claims and social pressures with economic and public image impacts. After the Ixtoc-1 oil spill on 1979, PEMEX focused its attention to enhance its environmental resources. In order to improve monitoring and evaluation capabilities, since 1999 PEMEX has begun to use Geographical Information Systems and remote sensing for oil slick detection and analysis. This work describes our four year experience with the RADARSAT-1 satellite applications, and how it has developed and integrated as a complementary tool for an operational monitoring multiyear program.

[1]  B. Holt,et al.  SEASAT views oceans and sea ice with synthetic aperture radar , 1982 .

[2]  Arturo Mendoza,et al.  The use of RADARSAT-1 SAR data for operational wind field retrieval , 2002, IEEE International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium.

[3]  Karen Bannerman,et al.  Operational applications of RADARSAT-1 for the monitoring of natural oil seeps in the South Gulf of Mexico , 2003, IGARSS 2003. 2003 IEEE International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium. Proceedings (IEEE Cat. No.03CH37477).

[4]  K. P. B. Thomson,et al.  Remote Sensing of Oil Spills , 1975 .

[5]  P. Vachon,et al.  SAR ocean feature catalogue , 1994 .