The paper describes an effort to evaluate selected halocarbons as alternative total-flood fire and explosion protection agents for Alaskan North Slope petroleum processing facilities. Adequate explosion and fire protection of enclosed spaces containing flammable gases and streaming fuel presents significant safety challenges for the North Slope petroleum industry. These areas are now protected by Halon 1301 total-flood fire and explosion suppression systems. However, because of the suspected negative impact on the global environment, Halon 1301 production will be sharply curtailed. Therefore, a program was initiated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency at the University of New Mexico's Center for Global Environmental Technologies to develop one or more potential Halon 1301 replacements for use in explosion inertion and fire suppression in North Slope oil and gas handling facilities. Among the factors considered were physical properties, toxicity, effectiveness, chemical stability, and environmental impacts of potential chemicals.