bp downplays drilling waste radioactivity

Drilling cuttings that are being delivered to the Qaradag Cement Works for utilization pose no dangerous radioactivity, bp environmental manager Ronnie Gallagher has told AssA-Irada.

According to him, bp never takes action without regular surveys and researches and comments from independent experts. In this case, drilling cuttings have many times been under radioactivity tests, as eight different types taken from various locations proved negative.

“Radioactivity is presumed dangerous when its level goes beyond 0.37 Beckerel per gram, but in our tests, the most radioactive cuttings showed 0.024 Beckerel per gram”, Mr. Gallagher noted.

It is said to be in international practice to use cuttings in cement making industries.

To support bp, Azeri experts from Nafta scientific center of the Geology Institute under the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences Cingiz Aliyev and Rufat Mammadov confirmed the safety of the drilling wastes in writing.