Releases of produced water from the offshore petroleum industry contain large quantities of oil and chemicals, and total discharges are expected to rise sharply in the years ahead.

The Government's goal is to ensure that discharges by the petroleum industry of substances which might be environmentally hazardous are eliminated completely. While intensifying its efforts to achieve this goal, the Government will also expect the operating companies to intensify their development and utilization of technology that can reduce or eliminate discharges of produced water. As a general rule, there should be no environmentally hazardous discharges from new oil or gas fields. On existing fields, the necessary measures to eliminate discharges should be in place by 2005.

The Government will, in cooperation with the petroleum industry, initiate a research programme to identify the long-term effects of these discharges.

The Government will ensure that an environmental impact assessment of year-round petroleum activities in the area from the Lofoten Islands northwards is carried out. This will provide a basis for assessing the framework for any expansion of petroleum activities in the north. The environmental impact assessment will, together with similar assessments for maritime transport, the fisheries and aquaculture, provide the basis for an integrated management plan for the Barents Sea. The Barents Sea will not be opened to further oil and gas activities until such a management plan has been drawn up.