Comparison of Stringency of the Environmental Requirements and Compliance with them in Upstream Sector of Oil and Gas in Iranian and American Law

Azizi, Hassan; Ameri, Faysal; Emami Meibodi, Ali

doi:10.22050/pbr.2019.112870

Comparison of Stringency of the Environmental Requirements and Compliance with them in Upstream Sector of Oil and Gas in Iranian and American Law

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Hassan Azizi ¹

Faysal Ameri ²

Ali Emami Meibodi ³

¹ PhD student in Law, Law Department, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran

² Associate Professor, Private Law Department, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran

³ Associate Professor, Department of Energy Economics, Faculty of Economics, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran

https://doi.org/10.22050/pbr.2019.112870

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to compare the stringency of and compliance with environmental requirements in the upstream sector of oil and gas in law of Iran and the USA. This study is conducted using the mixed entanglement method (qualitative–quantitative). In the qualitative part, library studies are used. In the quantitative part, the studied society is a group of six professionals in the field of oil and gas, who filled out a questionnaire consisted of 34 questions prepared by the Worley Parsons[1] in a similar research approved by the jurisdictions of 10 countries. The questions are prepared by a team of experts with international experience. The components of stringency of and compliance with law during the phases of approval, operation, and closure of a hydrocarbon project are studied using the Delphi method. At the level of stringency, the environmental assessment in the US is carried out with human resources and costs 10 and 26 times more than those in Iran. The US, with 13 scores, is more stringent than Iran with 5 scores. In the project closure phase, Iran does not impose any obligations for rehabilitation and restoration. At the level of compliance, the construction environmental management plan (CEMP) is mandatory in both countries. In Iran, the list of violations and their consequences will not be published. The US regulatory mechanisms of restoration are an appropriate model. On the whole, Iran gains 29 scores, and the United States obtains 42 scores. The recommendations are based on these two scores.

[1]https://www.medicinehat.ca/home/showdocument?id=11659

Keywords

Environmental Requirements

Stringency

Compliance

20.1001.1.26454726.2019.3.2.6.8

Subjects

Law Studies

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