OCS Study BOEM 2019-052 An Overview of Ecological Research Associated with Oil and Gas Platforms Offshore California US Department of the Interior Bureau of Ocean Energy Management Pacific OCS Region OCS Study BOEM 2019-052 An Overview of Ecological Research Associated with Oil and Gas Platforms Offshore California December 2019 Author: Milton S. Love Prepared under Cooperative Agreement Number M15AC00014 By Marine Science Institute University of California Santa Barbara, CA 93106 US Department of the Interior Bureau of Ocean Energy Management Pacific OCS Region DISCLAIMER Study collaboration and funding were provided by the US Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), Environmental Studies Program, Washington, DC, under Cooperative Agreement Number M15AC00014. This report has been technically reviewed by BOEM, and it has been approved for publication. The views and conclusions contained in this document are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as representing the opinions or policies of the US Government, nor does mention of trade names or commercial products constitute endorsement or recommendation for use. REPORT AVAILABILITY To download a PDF file of this report, go to the US Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management Data and Information Systems webpage (https://www.boem.gov/Environmental-Studies- EnvData/), click on the link for the Environmental Studies Program Information System (ESPIS), and search on 2019-052. CITATION Love MS. 2019. An Overview of Ecological Research Associated with Oil and Gas Platforms Offshore California. Camarillo (CA): US Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. OCS Study BOEM 2019-052. 148 p. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This work was supported by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) through Cooperative Agreement Number M15AC00014 with the University of California, Santa Barbara. We thank A. Bull, M. Eckenrode, and C. Dunkel for their help in this work’s various phases. Monica Pessino created the annotated bibliography website. Contents List of Figures ............................................................................................................................................... iii List of Abbreviations and Acronyms ............................................................................................................. iii 1 Executive Summary .............................................................................................................................. 1 2 Background ........................................................................................................................................... 3 3 The Development of California Offshore Oil and Gas ........................................................................... 3 4 A Summary of Previous California Platform Research ......................................................................... 6 4.1 Biology and Ecology of California Platform Organisms ............................................................... 6 4.2 Environmental Effects of Offshore Oil Development.................................................................. 14 4.3 Potential Consequences of Platform Decommissioning ............................................................ 19 5 An Annotated Bibliography of Research Conducted Worldwide on Organisms and Organismal Communities Associated with Oil and Gas Platforms ......................................................................... 25 6 Comparisons with Gulf of Mexico Platform Fish and Invertebrate Assemblages ............................... 26 7 An Issue of the Bulletin of Marine Science Dedicated to California Platform Science ....................... 27 8 References .......................................................................................................................................... 27 Appendix A: A Synopsis of Extant California Oil and Gas Platforms .......................................................... 43 A .......................................................................................................................................................... 43 B .......................................................................................................................................................... 43 C .......................................................................................................................................................... 44 Edith .................................................................................................................................................... 44 Ellen ..................................................................................................................................................... 45 Elly ....................................................................................................................................................... 45 Emmy .................................................................................................................................................. 45 Esther .................................................................................................................................................. 45 Eureka ................................................................................................................................................. 46 Eva ...................................................................................................................................................... 46 Gail ...................................................................................................................................................... 46 Gilda .................................................................................................................................................... 47 Gina ..................................................................................................................................................... 47 Grace ................................................................................................................................................... 47 Habitat ................................................................................................................................................. 48 Harmony .............................................................................................................................................. 48 Harvest ................................................................................................................................................ 49 i Henry ................................................................................................................................................... 49 Heritage ............................................................................................................................................... 49 Hermosa .............................................................................................................................................. 50 Hidalgo ................................................................................................................................................ 50 Hillhouse .............................................................................................................................................. 50 Hogan .................................................................................................................................................. 51 Holly ..................................................................................................................................................... 51 Hondo .................................................................................................................................................. 51 Houchin ............................................................................................................................................... 52 Irene .................................................................................................................................................... 52 Appendix B: Citations in the Online Annotated Bibliography ...................................................................... 54 Appendix C: Abstracts from the Bulletin of Marine Science Issue ............................................................ 142 C.1 Fishes and invertebrates of oil and gas platforms off California: an introduction and summary ................................................................................................................................... 142 C.2 An analysis of the fish assemblages around 23 oil and gas platforms off California with comparisons with natural habitats ............................................................................................ 142 C.3 Fishes with high reproductive output potential on California offshore oil and gas platforms ... 143 C.4 Offshore oil production platforms as potential sources of larvae to coastal shelf regions off southern California .............................................................................................................. 143 C.5 Timing of juvenile fish settlement at offshore oil platforms coincides with water mass advection into the Santa Barbara Channel, California ............................................................. 144 C.6 An analysis of the sessile, structure-forming