SAFETY STARTS HERE: Staying Safe on the North Slope: Facing Arctic weather, heavy-equipment, and wandering bears.

• Author: Stricker, Julie
• Position: RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT SPECIAL SECTION / ARCTIC

Working in Alaska's North Slope can be challenging enough, but a few companies are taking that challenge a step further, drilling from manmade islands into promising basins miles off the coast. Going offshore adds a measure of remoteness and additional hazards to the workplace, such as floating ice, frigid water, and transportation by boat, hovercraft, or helicopter--or tracked vehicle after freezup.

It's still Alaska's North Slope, so it's dark for months at a time. Blizzards bring high winds, stinging snow, and wind chills that in 2014 dropped to 97 degrees below zero. Polar and grizzly bears roam the region. In the summer, mosquitoes descend in hordes, backed up by swarms of biting flies.

Despite these conditions, a strong safety culture keeps accidents low, says Dave Wulf, vice president of health, safety, and environment for ConocoPhillips Alaska.

"We pride ourselves on our safety culture," Wulf says. "We're never happy with our performance. We always want to get better. In the world of safety, until you can sustain that nobody gets hurt and there's no injuries, you just keep trying harder and harder."

Training on Training

For workers, safety begins before they ever step foot on the North Slope tundra or venture offshore from it.

In 1997, the North Slope Training Cooperative was created to develop high-quality standardized health, safety. and environmental training programs. The cooperative began as an agreement between BP and ARCO on basic safety requirements for workers. Today, member companies include BP Exploration (Alaska); Caelus Energy Alaska; Conoco-Phillips Alaska; Eni Petroleum; ExxonMobil; and Hilcorp Alaska, which fund the program. Contractors for these companies also support the cooperative.

Workers must complete a six-part, eight-hour training course, referred to as a six-pack, to receive their NSTC card, which allows them to travel on the Slope without an escort. Topics cover camp and safety orientation; environment; hazard communication; hazardous waste operations and emergency response (HAZWOPER); personal protective equipment; and the Alaska Safety Handbook.

The Alaska Safety Handbook--produced by the cooperative--covers a wide range of topics, including heavy equipment safety, weather contingencies, travel, confined space work, and flammable hazards. Drugs and alcohol are strictly prohibited in the oilfields.

Offshore Circumstances

Most of Alaska's North Slope oilfields are onshore. However, a few miles off the coast Hilcorp is producing oil at Northstar Island (developed by BP in 1999) and is planning a similar development at the Liberty...