Ongoing oil leak in Alberta on First Nation lands is Minister of Environment's new challenge
From peoplesworld.org
Alberta oil leak into week 10 - can it be stopped?
- by: BLAKE DEPPE July 26 2013
Nine weeks ago, oil near a tar sands extraction site in Cold Lake, Alberta, Canada, began to leak and ooze from the ground. It is currently wending its way through a nearby swampy forest, blackening vegetation and killing wildlife. It shows no signs of stopping. Even worse, scientists have no idea where it's coming from or what to do about it.
Twenty-six thousand barrels of watery oil have already been removed from the area, but the efforts seem to be fruitless given the fact that as of now, the gushing crude cannot be stopped, and the actual source of the leak is unknown. The leak began, however, after Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. began extracting oil from beneath the ground by injecting ultra-hot, high-pressure steam into it, which allows crude to be pumped to the surface. It's called "cyclic steam stimulation (CSS)" in the industry, but concerned environmentalists will undoubtedly think of fracking, another practice that tampers with the earth, in that case to extract natural gas.
CSS was introduced by Shell, the big oil corporation with a filthy legacy of criminal action and environmental destruction, and has only been in heavy use in recent years, particularly in California and Venezuela. Along withtrain explosions, drilling rig blowouts, and leaking pipelines, all of which have occurred this year, CSS is another operation that can be added to the list of bad ideas.
"Everybody is freaking out about this," said a scientist who had been to the spill site. "We don't understand what happened. Nobody really understands how to stop it from leaking, or if they do, they haven't put the measures into place."
Bob Curran, a spokesman for Alberta Energy Regulator, a government agency that oversees oil operation sites, said what experts do know is that the leak is basically the result of "cracks in the ground," with "bitumen emulsion seeping out of those cracks." But they have so far been unable to pin down those cracks. "The challenges are basically figuring out what happened and then how to stop it."
Nikki Booth, spokesperson from Alberta Environment and Sustainable Resources Development, said, "We do know some animals [in the affected area] have already died, including waterfowl; beavers; tadpoles and frogs; and shrews."
Alberta Energy Regulator has since ordered Canadian Natural Resources to cease all operations until the leak is stopped.
The seemingly innumerable cases-in-point as to why oil and gas extraction are highly dangerous merely add fuel (so to speak) to the fire in terms of the Keystone XL project, which has infuriated environmental activists. President Obama said that that pipeline, which would transport crude from Alberta to the U.S., would be subjected to a study on whether it would increase greenhouse gas emissions, before being approved.
Chris Severson-Baker, managing director of clean energy advocacy group the Pembina Institute, remarked, "At this point, what can actually be done to prevent the leak from continuing to occur? I don't think there's anything. They don't even know whether this emulsion has impacted groundwater."
"This is a new kind of oil spill," agreed Greenpeace energy analyst Keith Stewart. "And there is no 'off' button. You can't cap it like a conventional oil well and you can't turn off a valve like on a pipeline." With CSS, he added, "you're pressuring the oil bed so hard that it's no wonder that it blows out. This means the oil will continue to leak until that pressure is relieved, which means the bitumen could be seeping from the ground for months."
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'Nobody understands' spills at Alberta oil sands operation
Oil spills at an oil sands operation in Cold Lake, Alberta have been going on for weeks with no end in sight, according to a government scientist.
Photos provided by a government scientist show the site of an oil spill in Cold Lake, Alta. The company that runs the operation says it is effectively managing the cleanup.
By: Emma Pullman and Martin Lukacs Special to the Star, Published on Fri Jul 19 2013
Oil spills at a major oil sands operation in Alberta have been ongoing for at least six weeks and have cast doubts on the safety of underground extraction methods, according to documents obtained by the Star and a government scientist who has been on site.
Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. has been unable to stop an underground oil blowout that has killed numerous animals and contaminated a lake, forest, and muskeg at its operations in Cold Lake, Alta.
The documents indicate that, since cleanup started in May, some 26,000 barrels of bitumen mixed with surface water have been removed, including more than 4,500 barrels of bitumen.
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The scientist said Canadian Natural Resources is not disclosing the scope of spills in four separate sites, which have been off bounds to media and the public because the operations are on the Cold Lake Air Weapons Range, where there is active weapons testing by the Canadian military.
The company says it is effectively managing and cleaning up the spills.
"The areas have been secured and the emulsion is being managed with clean up, recovery and reclamation activities well underway. The presence of emulsion on the surface does not pose a health or human safety risk. The sites are located in a remote area which has restricted access to the public. The emulsion is being effectively cleaned up with manageable environmental impact," the company said in a statement.
The documents and photos show dozens of animals, including beavers and loons, have died, and that 30,600 kg of oily vegetation has been cleared from the latest of the four spill zones.
The company's operations use an "in situ" or underground extraction technology called "cyclic steam stimulation," which involves injecting thousands of gallons of superhot, high-pressure steam into deep underground reservoirs. This heats and liquefies the hard bitumen and creates cracks through which the bitumen flows and is then pumped to the surface.
The scientist, who asked not to be named for fear of losing their job, said the operation was in chaos.
"Everybody (at the company and in government) is freaking out about this," said the scientist. "We don't understand what happened. Nobody really understands how to stop it from leaking, or if they do they haven't put the measures into place."
In response to emailed questions from the Star, Canadian Natural Resources said it was co-operating with the regulator.
"We are investigating the likely cause of the occurrence, which we believe to be mechanical," the company said.
"Canadian Natural has existing groundwater monitoring in place and we are undertaking aquatic and sediment sampling to monitor and mitigate any potential impacts. As part of our wildlife mitigation program, wildlife deterrents have been deployed in the area to protect wildlife.
"We are saddened that unfortunately some animal fatalities occurred between the time of the incident and the deployment of our animal deterrent systems. All of the fatalities have been reported to the Alberta Energy Regulator."
The company added that it has "taken appropriate steps to ensure no additional impact to wildlife or the environment and that the incident site is reclaimed."
Canadian Natural Resources did not respond to the charge that they aren't disclosing the scope of the spills.
Oil companies have said in situ methods are more environmentally friendly than the open-pit mining often associated with the Alberta oil sands, but in situ is more carbon and water-intensive.
"In the course of injecting steam they've created fractures from the reservoir to the surface that they didn't expect," said the scientist, who is speaking out over concern that neither the company nor Alberta's regulatory bodies would properly address the situation.
On Thursday, the Alberta Energy Regulator confirmed there were four spills in the last few months, and ordered Canadian Natural Resources to restrict its steam injections and enhance monitoring at the operations in Cold Lake.
Regulator official Bob Curran said the latest spill is spread across 40 hectares.
Canadian Natural Resources disputed that figure Friday. "We have the mapped area impacted to be significantly less than 40 hectares with the area being reduced daily through effective cleanup efforts," the company said.
Critics say such spills raise questions about the safety and viability of in situ extraction, which by 2020 is expected to account for as much as 40 per cent of Canada's oil sands production, because many of Alberta's deposits cannot be mined.
"This is a new kind of oil spill and there is no 'off button,' " said Keith Stewart, an energy analyst with Greenpeace who teaches a course on energy policy and environment at the University of Toronto. "You can't cap it like a conventional oil well or turn off a valve on a pipeline.
"You are pressurizing the oil bed so hard that it's no wonder that it blows out. This means that the oil will continue to leak until the well is no longer pressurized," which means the bitumen could be seeping from the ground for months.
The company said the process is sound and has a good track record over 30 years in Alberta. It said that nevertheless it is reviewing its wellbores "to enhance wellbore integrity and modify steaming strategies to prevent the remote possibility of these events in the future."
The Cold Lake operations are on the traditional territory of the Beaver Lake Cree First Nation, which is pursuing a constitutional challenge that argues the cumulative impacts of oil sands industrial development are infringing their treaty rights to hunt, fish and trap.
As well, the First Nation says there are graves alongside the lake in the area affected by the spills, and that band members have been unable to access that area.
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Will Leona Aglukkaq help or hinder the environment portfolio?
Leona Aglukkaq arrives at a swearing in ceremony at Rideau Hall in Ottawa on Monday, July 15, 2013. (Sean Kilpatrick / THE CANADIAN PRESS)
Bruce Cheadle, The Canadian Press - July 21, 2013
OTTAWA -- If there are any questions about why Leona Aglukkaq, the soft-spoken Inuk politician from Nunavut, was chosen by Stephen Harper to lead Environment Canada, the Prime Minister's Office is eager to dispel them.
"As an Inuk woman, minister Aglukkaq grew up with a cultural connection to our country's proud and vast Arctic," Julie Vaux, Harper's spokeswoman, told The Canadian Press in an email.
"She understands the need to protect our beautiful land as well as anyone. The minister is committed to protecting the environment for our families today and into the future."
Vaux was even more direct in a response to the Globe and Mail.
"The appointment of a minister of the Environment from the North, a region susceptible to climate change, speaks volumes about our government's commitment to the environment and sustainability."
Aglukkaq, 46, was largely overlooked in media coverage of last week's cabinet shuffle, when after more than four quiet -- critics would say invisible -- years as Harper's minister of health she was moved to Environment.
She becomes the fifth Conservative environment minister -- sixth, if you count John Baird's two, separate stints -- since Harper took office less than eight years ago.
Aglukkaq takes over the post at a time when the government is working overtime to convince Americans of Canada's environmental policy credentials in order to ease the approval of the Keystone XL pipeline.
The $5.3-billion project, designed to carry bitumen from Alberta's oilsands to refineries in the southern U.S., has been called a "no-brainer" by Harper but is being held up by President Barack Obama over concerns from the Democrat-backing environmental movement.
Aglukkaq will also become the fourth Conservative minister to promise greenhouse gas regulations for the oil and gas sector -- regulations that were first promised by Baird back in 2007. Aglukkaq's predecessor, Peter Kent, last promised the regulations would be revealed by mid-2013, a date the government has once again pushed off to the "coming months."
Insiders say Aglukkaq is hard-working, bright, looks after her constituency and is highly managed from the top. She seldom goes off script and almost never scrums with reporters.
Her office did not respond to a request for an interview for this story.
Aglukkaq has not distinguished herself as a gifted political communicator, and she has been widely criticized from across the political spectrum for her lacklustre four years at Health Canada.
The right-wing Fraser Institute, for instance, has taken her to task for failing to tackle Canada Health Act reforms, while critics on the left have decried cuts to independent health research and a hands-off approach on everything from OxyContin addiction to obesity and sodium reduction programs.
Aglukkaq's most notable flashes of political passion have revolved around her aboriginal ancestry.
Last year when a United Nations rapporteur delivered a harsh report on food security among Canada's aboriginal communities, Aglukkaq --and not the government's minister for Indian and Northern Affairs --was dispatched to respond.
Calling the report's author "an ill-informed and patronizing academic," Aglukkaq told the House of Commons that she had taken "the opportunity to educate him about Canada's North and aboriginal people that depend on the wildlife that they hunt every day for food security."
She later fulminated to Maclean's magazine that, "As an Inuk person who depends on the environment where I'm from for my well-being, it's insulting."
Aglukkaq also played on her ancestry to shoot down a Liberal MP's question about health care funding cuts for diabetes, suicide prevention and aboriginal health staff.
"Can the minister explain to this House why her cuts target the population with the worst health outcomes in Canada, the aboriginal people of Canada," asked Liberal Carolyn Bennett, herself a physician.
"As an aboriginal person, I take that type of line of questioning to be unacceptable," Aglukkaq responded.
The exchange prompted Anthony Morgan, a commentator on race issues with a law degree and Jamaican-born parents, to question Canada's overly deferential attitudes toward the imposition of race into legitimate public policy matters.
"When a politician who is a visible minority or aboriginal person happens to make public decisions or take policy positions that have a disproportionately adverse impact on citizens who share that politician's cultural background, we hesitate and often totally avoid asking legitimately critical questions," Morgan wrote in the Huffington Post.
Nunavut's relatively small health care and aboriginal services community is reluctant to speak on the record about Aglukkaq's time as health minister.
One researcher said environmental activists are likely to be "disoriented" by having an Innu woman in charge of Environment Canada, at least in the short term.
But a longtime Washington observer discounted Aglukkaq being able to cow U.S. environmental critics with talk of her upbringing.
Chris Sands, a Canada-watcher at the Washington-based Hudson Institute, said Aglukkaq will get a fresh hearing in the U.S. Capitol but "if the message is unchanged, the messenger can only get people in D.C. to hear it again, and maybe persuade a few people on the margins."
Sands also said the left in the U.S. has a long history of characterizing minority individuals who don't tow the progressive line as sell-outs.
"In Canada, it is hard to imagine an effort to delegitimize an aboriginal woman in the same way."
Indeed even some of the government's harshest critics, while skeptical of Aglukkaq, are willing to give her the benefit of the doubt.
"Her cultural identity is totally based on the land, so we're hoping she will remember where she came from," said Michele Audette, president of the Native Women's Association of Canada, which has had federally funded programs and seats on federal panels eliminated by the Conservatives.
"But for the health portfolio we found out that she was really close to the prime minister's values."
The Native Women's Association of Canada has already written to the new minister, asking to reinstate the group's seat on federal forums dealing with issues like species at risk and intellectual property.
"Yes, she abides so closely with the Harper approach," said Audette.
"But also with women, as Inuk and Conservative, maybe she'll be able to bring a new wave or fresh wind to say, 'Let's do things differently."'
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Alberta Primrose oilsands leaks contained, says CNRL
Nearly 1 million litres of bitumen leaked into bush on Cold Lake Air Weapons Range
The Canadian Press
Aug 1, 2013
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A "mechanical failure" at an old well is behind ongoing bitumen seepage at the Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. oilsands project on the Cold Lake Air Weapons Range in northeastern Alberta, the company says..
The Calgary-based company said Wednesday the damage has been contained and the cleanup is proceeding well.
"Canadian Natural is confident the cause of the seepage is due to the mechanical failure of well bores in the vicinity of impacted locations," president Steve Laut said in a conference call. "We have a pretty good idea of the likely well bores."
At least one critic wondered if that was the whole answer, pointing out that an earlier spill at the same site was judged to be at least partly caused by CNRL's practices.
Quoting from an investigative report into a 2009 CNRL leak, the Pembina Institute noted that the regulator concluded: "The (Energy Resources Conservation Board) is also of the view that geological weaknesses in combination with stresses induced by high-pressure steam injection may have contributed to the release."
For weeks now, bitumen has been oozing to the surface at CNRL's Primrose project, which uses high-pressure, high-temperature steam to soften underground bitumen and force it up wells.
Almost a million litres of bitumen have so far leaked into the bush and muskeg and another 2,400 litres seep in every day.
Much of oozing bitumen removed
Laut said each of four locations where bitumen has been oozing to the surface has been secured. The affected area has now been reduced from about 20 hectares to 13.5 hectares and much of the bitumen has already been removed.
"The bitumen emulsion will continue to seep at an ever-declining rate for a period of time," said Laut. "There is effectively little to no environmental damage to manage the ever-declining seepage."
The seepage consisting of bitumen instead of oil makes the cleanup easier in some ways, he added.
"It's heavy and it's viscous and it doesn't actually flow unless it's warm, so it doesn't go very far and it's very easy to collect."
Laut said an old well drilled in 1997 by a previous operator is the suspected culprit. The company will check records for all the wells on its lease to see if any of them might pose a future risk.
"If we see wells that are flagged as having higher risk, we're going to go back and determine if there is a risk there. If there is a risk, we'll remediate it."
Steaming process can be adjusted, CNRL says
If any wells aren't fixable, the company can adjust its steaming process to eliminate the risk, Laut said.
There is little chance that the injected steam has damaged the cap rock over the deposit, he said. That would require more steam pressure than the company uses.
"It's impossible to frack through (the rock) with the pressures we're using."
However, Alberta's previous energy regulator said in its investigation into the 2009 spill that the cap rock could contain pre-existing faults or might have been recently cracked.
The Energy Resources Conservation Board also blamed the high volumes of steam that CNRL injected.
"The ERCB is of the view that this likely contributed to the bitumen emulsion surface release. CNRL acknowledged that the Cycle 1 injection volumes may have contributed to the release," said the board's report.
The company said there is no risk to humans from the seepage, although 16 birds, seven small mammals and 38 amphibians have died as a result.
The discoveries were immediately reported to the Alberta Energy Regulator, which is working with the company and Alberta Environment and Sustainable Resource Development to investigate and remediate affected locations.
The company's near-term steaming plan at Primrose has also been modified as a result of the spill, with restrictions on steaming in some areas until the investigation is complete.
Laut said the cleanup is likely to cost about $40 million.
Another $20 million will be spent drilling new monitoring wells.
He said it's not expected that the company's production figures of between 100,000 and 107,000 barrels a day will change, although its estimates for next year's production will be about 10,000 fewer barrels a day.
Laut said the company believes the 2009 spill was also caused by a well failure, that time one of its own. Well designs were modified after that. Older wells were checked, but not as closely as they will be now.
"We didn't go through them with the same rigour that we're doing at this point in time. There was a belief that it wasn't an issue."