Peculiarities of oil spills spreading in ice conditions of the Arctic seas

Ensuring reliable operation of offshore pipelines is one of the primary tasks of the development of hydrocarbon resources of the Arctic shelf.The compulsory requirement of such operation is the provision of Oil Spill Response Plans (OSRPs) which is impossible without a clear understanding of theoil slick behaviour after spill.Low water temperature, seasonal changes in salinity and the presence of ice conditions (6-9 months a year) have a significant impact on the propagation mechanism of emergency oil spills in Arctic waters.The paper summarizes the world practice of theoretical and experimental research regarding the spread of oil spills in Arctic waters to identify the key factors and to evaluate the existing mathematical models for applicability to a particular case - depressurization of the marine pipeline operating in conditions ofthe Arctic shelf.