Reforming Health, Safety, and Environmental Regulation for Offshore Operations in China: Risk and Resilience Approaches?

Offshore drilling accidents have triggered regulatory reforms in China. The reforms aim to explore proper regulatory approaches to supervise offshore operations and improve their health, safety and environmental (HSE) performance. This study offers a review on the roles of risk and resilience in managing offshore operations and a well-defined analysis on their integrations with Chinese laws and regulations. The study finds risk and resilience approaches can promote the effectiveness of HSE regulation for offshore operations, while both are difficult to be transposed into legally binding rules in China. To fully develop and implement risk regulation for offshore operations, the study suggests to decentralize China’s command-and-control regulatory regime and encourage self-regulation in offshore petroleum companies. Transposing resilience thinking into legal practice is also highlighted so that various regulatory powers can keep proactive and flexible to any possible changes and uncertainties