For all the advanced technology about unlocking Earth's secrets and tapping into our planet's natural resources, the oil and natural gas industry constantly is learning from the consequences of its actions. This involves both the good and the bad.
Unfortunately, it's the negative consequences that get the publicity—as with the recent tanker oil spill off Spain. For decades, oil company executives have lamented how it's harder to gain attention for industry's environmental stewardship than for its mistakes.
The industry's positive contributions are many, including interdisciplinary scientific advancements. But researchers of all disciplines know that sound bites and scientific findings often are incompatible.
This is because science is neither simple nor quick, especially when knowledge expands over years. An ongoing study of marine organisms living on offshore platform legs is a case in point.
Biotechnology
The US Department of the Interior's Minerals Management Service is funding studies for medical research into the pharmaceutical potential of marine organisms found on platforms off California and Louisiana. MMS is providing the University of California at Santa Barbara and Louisiana State University with $500,000 each, which the universities match (OGJ, Jan. 15, 2001, p. 60).
MMS marine biologist and environmental science studies analyst Susan Childs of New Orleans is among the scientists who scuba dive and harvest organisms for testing.
Although enthusiastic about the study, she would not estimate when definitive results might be available. She also said it is too early to say when, or if, oil companies and pharmaceutical companies might do business together.
The study seeks to determine whether marine organisms could assist in the treatment against certain types of cancer and other diseases, including AIDS.
"This study is a good example of how industry works with scientists," Childs said. "This is kind of a serendipitous thing because we have a lot of artificial substrate, and we have a tremendous amount of marine life growing on it."
The effort started in 1998 when the National Ocean Conference in Monterey, Calif., dubbed biotechnology as a national priority, saying that oceans—like rain forests—contain living organisms having unknown benefits for pharmaceutical purposes.
Bioproducts
Childs said bacteria, algae, bryozoans, and mollusks collected from platform legs have potential as bioproducts. So far, the only marine compound to enter Phase II clinical trials is Bryostatin 1, a compound isolated from the bryozoan Bugula neritina.
Bryostatin 1, produced by symbiotic bacteria, combats the growth of cultured cancer cells and has shown some promise in fighting non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and lymphocitic leukemia.
Bryzoans are found on platforms; however, so far, none of the bryozoans collected in the Gulf of Mexico have the symbiotic bacteria that is the source of the bryostatin, Childs said.
Study logistics
"The biotechnology study goes from 61 ft to 200 ft (of water in the Gulf of Mexico). There are six platforms involved," Childs said. "The platforms are anywhere from 5 miles to 60 miles offshoreU. We are in the original phase for the last set of data collected in May, so we're not through with Phase 1 yet."
She said the industry has demonstrated "tremendous" cooperation for scientific studies of all sorts during the 10 years in which she has worked in the Gulf of Mexico for MMS. "I have found that most everyone (working) on a platform is very interested in what is going on under that water. It's mysterious," Childs said.
Meanwhile, Childs believes both industry and science will learn something from the ongoing research regardless of how the study turns out.
"Industry will benefit from any research that goes on with their platforms…. It's a huge habitat that we don't know a whole lot about," she said.
Industry long has envisioned value under the ocean waves. In the future, that value could include unforeseen biological consequences benefiting human health.
