Letter to Phil Middleton, Environmental and Social Impact Assessment Manager Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Pipeline Project British Petroleum, signed by 18 caspian NGOsNovember, 18, 2002 Dear Mr. Middleton, In a recent interview with the newspaper Echo (Opponents of Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Do Not Want to Hear BP's Arguments), you stated In the Caspian region, we are utilizing technology that is accepted throughout the world. These technologies are in full accordance with international standards. As members of the public environmental control network Caspwatch, which includes approximately 50 NGOs from the Caspian countries of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia and Turkmenistan, we would like to receive more detailed information regarding the international standards employed by BP for the exploration, extraction and transportation of oil in the Caspian Sea and along the BTC route. In particular, we request the following information: 1) What standards does BP adhere to regarding permissible technologies for the loss of oil during extraction on marine platforms and during transport to pipelines? Please include reference to the document(s) in which these standards are defined. 2) What standards does BP adhere to regarding permissible technologies for the loss of oil during the transport to tankers at the Sangachal oil terminal, for loading into the BTC pipeline? Please include reference to the document(s) in which these standards are defined. 3) What standards, legislation or normative acts does BP adhere to in conducting transboundary Environmental Impact Assessments of projects in the Caspian? 4) What standards, legislation or normative acts does BP adhere to regarding drilling muds and their utilization on marine platforms? 5) What standards, legislation or normative acts does BP adhere to regarding the development of response plans for major oil spills in the sea and in rivers and water bodies crossed by the pipeline (including spills that may have transboundary impacts)? 6) What standards are used to evaluate the status of soil layers, industrial equipment, and those natural objects to be affected by the most dangerous stages of exploitation? What standards are used to evaluate the status of these same natural objects following the development of a field? Once we have received your reply, we will distribute it among the members of the network and via the website www.caspwatch.ru in order to support the mutually advantageous exchange of information between BTC/BP and the community. Thank you in advance for your reply, Samir Isaev Chair, Ecolex-Azerbaijan, Baku Elchin Sultanov, Chair, Azerbaijan Society for the Protection of Birds, Baku Enver Safar-Zade ISAR's Caspian Program, Baku Boris Golubov, Socio-Ecological Union, Moscow Aleksey Knizhnikov, ISAR's Caspian Program, Moscow Sergey Solyanik Ecological Society Green Salvation, Almaty Nikolai Sobolev Coordinator, Northern Eurasia Environmental Network Working Group Aleksey Klushin Astrakhan Association, Green World Lidia Kulizade Alga, Baku Elena Vasilieva Volgograd Irina Chebatyreva Volgograd Islam Mustafaev, Ruzgar, Baku Timur Berekeliev, Carena, Ashabad Mamedali Ibragimov Salgym, Ashabad Gultakin Mamedova Baku Viktoria Nazarenko RIF, Turkmenbashi Aleksey Grayznov, Expert, Turkmenbashi Farida Guseinova, Green movement, Baku Evgeni Vilkov, Manana Devidze, |