SPE 98193

Introducing a Total Waste Management Program

G. Lawrie, SPE, and D. Forbes, Schlumberger

Copyright 2006, Society of Petroleum Engineers

The program is not unique to one area and is currently
This paper was prepared for presentation at the SPE International Conference on Health, being implemented in other locations across the world,
Safety, and Environment in Oil and Gas Exploration and Production held in Abu Dhabi, U.A.E.,
2–4 April 2006. including Norway and Abu Dhabi. This paper is designed to
This paper was selected for presentation by an SPE Program Committee following review of
share best practices with other oil and gas companies across
information contained in a proposal submitted by the author(s). Contents of the paper, as the globe.
presented, have not been reviewed by the Society of Petroleum Engineers and are subject to
correction by the author(s). The material, as presented, does not necessarily reflect any
position of the Society of Petroleum Engineers, its officers, or members. Papers presented at
SPE meetings are subject to publication review by Editorial Committees of the Society of
Background
Petroleum Engineers. Electronic reproduction, distribution, or storage of any part of this paper In 1994, landfill tax for waste disposal was U.K. £3 per ton of
for commercial purposes without the written consent of the Society of Petroleum Engineers is
prohibited. Permission to reproduce in print is restricted to an abstract of not more than 300 waste generated. By 2005, landfill tax had risen to U.K. £18
words; illustrations may not be copied. The abstract must contain conspicuous
acknowledgment of where and by whom the paper was presented. Write Librarian, SPE, P.O.
per ton of waste. It is estimated that by 2010, landfill tax could
Box 833836, Richardson, Texas 75083-3836 U.S.A., fax +1.972.952.9435. increase by 100% to reach an estimated U.K. £35 per ton of
waste.
These costs only relate to the cost associated with the tax;
Abstract
it costs us three times this to dispose one ton of waste to a
In 2001, Schlumberger (SLB) decided to develop and
landfill.
introduce a total waste management system. Rising quantities
It became apparent that a radical rethink was required as to
of landfill waste were deemed unacceptable. Not only did the
how waste was managed. There were also internal drivers for
global quality, health, safety, and environment (QHSE) policy
change; many employees felt that we could become more
state a goal of “no harm to the environment,” but also landfill
environmentally friendly and that we had an obligation under
waste disposal costs had more than doubled in the last 10
the company health, safety and environment policy to achieve
years and were predicted to treble over the next 10 years.
“zero harm to the environment.” It was against this backdrop
The single-source waste management program integrated
that the concept of a total waste management program was
the following tasks: interceptor maintenance, hazardous waste
established.
disposal, dry waste disposal, tank cleaning, industrial cleaning,
recycling, sampling and analysis of interceptors and
Identifying Waste Streams
separators, waste reporting, consultancy and advice, oil and
The first task was to identify our actual waste streams. These
chemical spill response, confidential disposal service, and
fell into a series of different categories:
regular review meetings. The improved segregation of waste,
awareness of final disposal treatment costs, disposal to
• Interceptors
landfill, incineration procedures, and recycling (of plastic,
o Oil waste separators in our washbays
wood, metal, glass, white paper, newspaper, toner cartridges,
o Surface water runoffs in our yards and carparks
and plastic cups) contributed to significant recycling
opportunities as well as reduced the total quantity of waste. • Hazardous waste disposal
The program also offered accurate control and traceability of o Acids
final waste destination. It created an immediate 25 to 30% cost o Oxidizers
reduction. o Solvents (parts washers)
Further benefits included an overall improvement in o Paint
general housekeeping that reduced health and safety exposure o Contaminated samples
and a general increase in environmental awareness and o Oils
concern. The employees were very enthusiastic about the • Dry waste
program, and it was noted that awareness did not stop at work: o Empty paint tins, polystyrene, packaging, and
the focus switched to home, as more employees actively floor sweepings
started to seek out the local recycling depots for waste • Tank cleaning
produced at home. o Cement silos, pressure tanks, and sumps
• Industrial cleaning
2 SPE 98193

o Drain jetting, gully cleaning, interceptor Services Developed through Partnership

cleaning, inspection chambers, and intermediate The introduction of the program brought a series of new
bulk containers. environmental initiatives.

Having developed a detailed list of environmental waste Recyling Facilities at Every Location. As a result of the new
streams, we began to build up a more realistic picture of the milk-run collection process, segregation of waste became
true nature of the problem. There were 12 sites in the essential and more awareness was required. People started to
Aberdeen area alone, and everyone had separate arrangements identify waste streams that had never previously been
for the removal and disposal of waste. Sometimes there were 5 identified. In the past, such waste was all considered “general
or 6 different vendors at one location, all responsible for one waste,” compounded by the fact that we only ever had one
small aspect of the process. There was no “management” of skip on site.
waste disposal at all.
The decision was made to move toward one single-source Sampling and Analysis, We established a program to sample
vendor for all waste management streams across all locations. and inspect both foul water and surface water interceptors on a
quarterly basis. As a result of this analysis, we became much
Establishing a Single-Source Vendor more sensitized to what we were disposing into our drains. We
Following an extensive vendor selection process involving focused our attention on cleaning up our washbays and yards
national and local waste management contractors, a single to minimize oily waste from entering the drains.
waste and interceptor management contract was awarded to an Figures 1 through 5 show the sampling information that
Aberdeen-based company, accredited to ISO 9000-2000 and was collected and analysed for a typical location.
ISO 14001 quality and environmental management systems,
with a 15-year proven track record with Schlumberger. The
vendor’s recent acquisition of new landfill sites and the pH VALUES
vendor’s flexible approach made them an ideal partner in our Foul
goal to measure, reuse, recycle, and reduce all waste streams. 12
The scope of the effort included the provision of total Surface
10
waste and interceptor management to the 12 main oilfield 8 S W Consent Low
services operational sites within a 30-mile radius of Aberdeen. 6
Based on an estimate of the waste streams received from each S W Consent
4
facility, we introduced the concept of a "milk-run” approach High
2
for selected waste streams. The milk-run approach consists of SL min Low
0
a dedicated vehicle that visits all SLB sites on a nominated
Q1 2004

Q2 2004

Q3 2004

Q4 2004

Q1 2005

Q2 2005

Q3 2005

Q4 2005
day to collect an identified waste stream. The rear-end loading SL min High
vehicle (REL) would collect general waste from the individual
sites, weighing the waste as it was collected, and then make
one journey at the end of the day to the sorting depot before Fig. 1—pH values taken from the interceptor. Key: Foul relates to
being disposed to the landfill. This included general waste foul water sewer; Surface is surface-water run-off; SL min Low is
the Schlumberger corporate limit for low pH levels, and
(plastic wrappers, used foodstuffs, and used packaging); wood correspondingly, SL min High is the same limit related to high-pH
waste; oil-contaminated waste; and the waste from the levels; S W Consent Low is the Scottish Water consent lower pH
emptying and cleaning of all site oil interceptors. limit; S W Consent High is the corresponding high pH limit.
Other initiatives included the accurate measurement of Scottish Water is the local regulatory authority for water-related
waste through the use of REL's with load-cell facilities. The legislation.
REL will know the weight it has onboard before it enters a
site; once it has collected the waste it deducts the new total Data in the figures show that the limits imposed by
weight from the previous weight, which then gives an accurate Schlumberger are more stringent that those applied by local
weight of waste collected. For the first time ever we would legislation. Schlumberger’s policy on these issues is that the
have accurate feedback on all waste streams from all sites. site is required to comply with the most stringent requirement
The first important foundation was achieved ”if you can”t defined, regardless of whether it is internal or external.
measure you can”t manage.” This strategy complemented the
waste stream segregation initiatives that were taking place in
tandem at each site.
SPE 98193 3

THC Settled BOD

SL Limit to Surface
140
20mg/l 1200
120
1000
100 Foul
80 800
Surface
600 Foul
60 S W Consent
Surface
40 SL limit (foul) 400
S W Consent
20 200
SL limit
0 0
Q1 2004

Q2 2004

Q3 2004

Q4 2004

Q1 2005

Q2 2005

Q3 2005

Q4 2005

Q1 2004

Q2 2004

Q3 2004

Q4 2004

Q1 2005

Q2 2005

Q3 2005

Q4 2005
Fig. 2—Readings for total hydrocarbons (THC), 2004–2005 to date. Fig. 5—Readings for biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), 2004–
The spike in Q4 2004 was a sampling error. This was a good 2005 to date. Key explained in Fig.1. Y-Axis units are mg/Litre.
learning opportunity to help improve the process. Key explained
in Fig.1. Y-Axis units are mg/litre.
Waste Reporting. All waste was segregated and recorded on
a monthly basis. Data in Figs. 1–5 show what was being
Suspended Solids recorded. These reports are detailed to ensure accuracy. The
2004 figures for waste costs for the contract were within 0.1%
600 of the figures that we routinely recorded in our internal QHSE
500 database, QUEST. This was very encouraging and highlighted
Foul the fact that the numbers we record are accurate.
400
Surface
300
S W Consent Consultancy and Advice. The contract that we developed
200 included a clause in which we requested that the provider give
SL limit
100 us feedback and advice that could improve our system or
0 could assist us in rectifying problems. We wanted the
Q1 2004

Q2 2004

Q3 2004

Q4 2004

Q1 2005

Q2 2005

Q3 2005

Q4 2005

contractor to be proactive to ensure that we tackled problems

together and shared the rewards. An example of this would be
where we designed a program together for the handling of
Fig. 3—Readings for suspended solids, 2004–2005 to date. Key electronic waste. We made initial visits to disposal companies
explained in Fig.1. Y-Axis units are mg/Litre. and selected a vendor who was committed to producing a
detailed report of the disposal routes that the equipment
traveled. The vendor also agreed that they would try to reuse
Settled COD as much of the equipment as possible. Much of the equipment
SL Limit 300 when direct to
was offered to developing countries in which this technology
2500 water course,not through a was available. As a result of the greatly reduced costs;
treatment plant
schools, hospitals, and other administrative entities were able
2000
to benefit.
1500
Foul
1000 Surface Oil and Chemical Spill Response. It quickly became
S W Consent apparent to us that one area in which we lacked expertise was
500
“emergency response”. All of our sites dealt with hazardous
0 chemicals and we were well prepared to deal with related
Q1 2004

Q2 2004

Q3 2004

Q4 2004

Q1 2005

Q2 2005

Q3 2005

Q4 2005

incidents. However, we had completely overlooked the risks

that came simply from daily work operations involving
forklifts and trucks that delivered and collected goods from the
Fig. 4—Readings for chemical oxygen demand (COD), 2004–2005 sites. If diesel spilled from a burst tank, the potential to pollute
to date. Key explained in Fig.1. Y-Axis units are mg/Litre. our local watercourses was a real threat. With the help of our
waste management company, which was highly experienced
in emergency response techniques, we developed an
environmental emergency plan. This included the provision of
mobil “spill kits” in strategic locations to match risk. Our
vendor helped to identify these high-hazard locations based on
there considerable experience assisting other companies in the
4 SPE 98193

local area. Again in conjunction with our vendor, we designed became more aware of our obligation to protect all land from
and implemented a training program to prepare our staff to harmful substances.
manage accidental discharge and chemical spills. The training
is conducted in-house. The vendor provides regular updates Awareness of Treatment Costs. We had substantial
and input to keep the training current and relevant. Our vendor treatment costs associated with the disposal of contaminated
relationship works two ways—our vendor recently asked to water. We emptied our interceptors on a quarterly basis and
use some of our training material to assist other clients. were faced with escalating costs owing to the significant
hydrocarbon content in the water. The water had to be treated
Confidential Waste Disposal. The waste vendor provided a before it could be disposed of to meet landfill regulations. In
“curtain-side” 7.5-ton truck with a shredding machine fitted on an effort to reduce these costs, we established various methods
the back. The vendor shredded sensitive paper and binders to to recycle the water, rather than dispose of it. This had been
ensure Schlumberger and client confidentiality. recognised as “best practice” through our independent auditing
process on some of our sites. In one location in which we
Regular Review Meetings. Regular meetings were planned to conducted daily water pressure tests, we discovered that we
ensure two-way communication between both parties. were using 2000 to 3000 L of water for one test. On
Meetings would be held monthly with site representatives completion of the test, this water was disposed. By introducing
from each Schlumberger location to discuss relevant issues a holding tank and recycling capability, we were able to reuse
and proposals. This open dialogue with the vendor helped to the water for many months, thus saving several hundred
eradicate problems and improve quality. thousand liters of water.
We introduced a program of washbay management. This
Resiting Underground Tanks. We had several locations with enabled us to increase the interval between emptying the
underground storage tanks and pipes. We were concerned that interceptors. We moved to a six–month schedule, rather than
it was very difficult to determine the condition of this the original quarterly schedule. This made a huge impact by
equipment; it could be deteriorating and possibly leaking reducing the cost of emptying the interceptors, the further cost
contents into the ground. There was potential danger of of treatment of the contaminated water, and the cost of fresh
environmental damage to the local water courses. We decided water to refill the interceptor; it also reduced the number of
to remove all of the underground storage facilities and journeys made by the road tankers to empty the interceptors,
associated trunking. All equipment was relocated above which in turn helped to reduce the quantity of exhaust
ground to enable regular, robust integrity checks. The emissions to the atmosphere.
company would have demanded an exemption from our
worldwide enviormental standard if we had opted to leave the Incineration Costs. We identified a recycling center that
tanks underground. We would have had to justify this decision would take all the waste oil we produced. Though it had to be
based on risk assessment. This would have been very difficult transported some considerable distance, it was a more
to justify. environmentally friendly option than sending it to incineration
or landfill. It also resulted in considerable cost savings; only a
Immediate Success very small quantity was unsuitable for recycling and thus had
The results over the first few years were startling. The to be sent to incineration.
program affected results in four key areas.
Recycling Opportunities. One of the main aims of the
Segregation of Waste. With the contract in place; clearly contract was to reduce the amount of waste that went to
marked disposal routes were identified. Waste collection skips landfill. Figure 6 illustrates our monthly disposal of waste
were located in each site. The milk-run collection and ad hoc during 2005 year to date. The y-axis shows the number of tons
collection were quickly established. of waste disposed to landfill.
The monthly reports made an immediate impact; for the
first time we could quantify the amount of the waste being
produced.
It was quite startling to see how quickly our general
housekeeping improved now that there were clearly marked
outlets for the different waste streams.
There was better accountability in the disposal of
hazardous waste; we could now document what was on site
and ensure that the correct paper work was completed to
dispose of it in the correct manner. This ensured that no
hazardous waste materials were disposed of in the general
waste skip. Although this was legally acceptable at the time,
we could see how this might damage the landfill sites. We
SPE 98193 3

1400 Employees “Taking It Home.” The increased awareness of

environmental issues at work resulted in a developing culture
1200 of environmental awareness at home. For example; our staff
started segregating household waste and began to actively
1000
General Waste seek out local recycling points. Such activities will bring
Wood
800 oil
substantial benefit in the future. Because young members of
Plastic the family will be raised with a positive attitude towards
Metal
600
Water environmental issues, recycling of waste will become standard
Other practice.
400 Total

200 Housekeeping. We observed significant improvements in the

standard of general housekeeping around our facilities. We
0 attributed this to two key processes; every waste stream had a
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep
dedicated disposal route (no storage of rubbish) and
Fig. 6—Tons of waste disposed in landfill from January through environmental teams conducted regular audits and inspections.
September 2005.

Employee Attitude and Behavior. We have witnessed a

Wood is one of our main sources of waste; it was sent to
significant “step change” in our employees’ attitude toward
two locations. At the first location, a charitable program for
environmental protection. This is evident in the increased level
handicapped people, some of our waste wood was recycled to
of environmental risk identification reports over the last four
make, for example, bird boxes and gates. The products were
years. Employees are much more aware of environmental
then sold. Other wooden waste products were cleaned (i.e.,
exposure and controls. Employees are now empowered to
nails, staples, hinges, or brackets were removed) and were
effect changes and are responsible for the progress that is now
then resold for reuse by industry and local people. Any
being made. Increased reporting and suggestions for
product that was not suitable for these purposes would be
improvement are examples of that employee ownership and
processed through a wood chipping machine to be made into
commitment. Our employees take personal responsibility for
flooring materials. The second waste stream was for
the results we produce; environmental issues are now on the
reprocessed wood, which was sent to landfill.
QHSE agenda, and employees accept the social responsibility
Paper and cardboard comprised another significant waste
to effectively manage the environment.
stream. They were collected in segregated skips and then
consolidated into 1-T bales by the waste disposal vendor. The
The Future
bales are then sent to paper mills for reprocessing.
It is important to continue to build on the programe. We are in
We discovered a very diverse array of recyling
the process of extending the initiative to Norway, Denmark,
opportunities; there are specialised plants to deal with
and the Netherlands. But we foresee even greater challenges in
chemicals where “waste” can be reprocessed into cement for
the years to come. It is possible that the European Union may
future use. Aluminium waste is melted down into ingots so
set new goals to seek a 75% reduction in solid waste going to
that it can be re-sold and reused. Graded plastic products are
landfill in the next 15 years. We must continue to find ways to
chipped and recycled for plastic injection moulding. All
reduce our environmental footprint. We need to proactively
ferrous and non-ferrous materials are sent to reputable scrap
look at packaging processes in our production sites to see what
dealers who segregate the metals for forward transfer to
changes can be made to further reduce the amount of waste
foundries.
generated. We will continue to develop and evaluate new
technology for waste reprocessing, and strive to achive our
Additional Benefits
long-term goal of “No waste from a Schlumberger operation
There have been many additional benefits from the program,
will end up in landfill.”
including the following
Conclusions
Employee Participation. All sites now have a dedicated
It would be difficult to put an exact dollar figure on how much
Environmental Team (EVT). This team manages
money Schlumberger has saved since this working
environmental issues that arise at the various locations; they
relationship began. It is a relatively straightforward model and
implement programs and help resolve any problems or
can easily be implemented by any company in any location.
challenges that arise. As awareness of environmental issues
There is no doubt that substantial financial savings have been
gained impetus, employee buy-in and participation also
made; however, it is the “softer” side of our business in which
increased. Monthly environmental inspections were organised,
the most significant improvements have been made: namely;
and spill-response emergencies were drilled. The segregation
increasing morale and promoting positive changes in both
of waste was considered to be very important and people
occupational and nonoccupational awareness of environmental
began to take notice of where the waste was actually going.
concerns.