Regulatory authority fines Imperial Oil for incident at Kearl project

The Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) has imposed an administrative penalty and conditions on Imperial Oil Ltd. in connection with an incident at the Kearl Oil Sands Project.

The project is an Imperial oil sands mine in the Athabasca oil sands region in the Kearl Lake area north of Fort McMurray in Alberta, Canada.

In August 2022, the AER confirmed that Imperial had discharged a substance containing industrial wastewater into the surrounding catchment area, in breach of the Environmental Protection and Improvement Act.

The AER also released the first results of its ongoing investigation into possible violations at the Kearl site following the issuance of the Environmental Protection Order (EPO) in February 2023.

“This portion of the AER's investigation revealed that a shallow underground pathway from industrial wastewater sources on the leased property bypassed the existing deep groundwater interception system (SIS), resulting in releases outside the leased property. To date, no impacts to fish, amphibians or other wildlife have been reported to the AER,” the agency said in a news release.

As a result, the AER is imposing on Imperial the seizure of two key projects and an administrative fine of CAD 50,000.

Under the terms, Imperial must submit and implement a quality assurance project proposal to share lessons learned with other oil sands operators. It must also develop a plan to ensure that tailings containment and spill monitoring processes are completed, the AER said. The plan must also include a detailed schedule and interim reports and produce a final report that includes public and industry education.

In addition, Imperial must submit and implement a proposal for an industrial wastewater release (process-affected water and CST pore water) research project to further investigate and understand the potential impacts of industrial wastewater release (including process-affected water and CST pore water) on the ecosystem, the press release said.

Both projects require publication of final reports on the company's website. All work and reports under these terms must be carried out by qualified personnel and all work carried out by Imperial employees must be verified by qualified independent third parties to ensure that the results are credible and reliable, the AER stated.

“These findings and the resulting compliance and enforcement decisions do not cover all possible violations that may have occurred at Kearl and are being handled in accordance with the EPO's provisions. The investigation is ongoing,” the AER noted.

In an emailed statement to Rigzone, Imperial said: “We have received the Alberta Energy Regulator's decision and fully support the additional education and research projects outlined in the assessment. We will work with local Indigenous communities and their traditional knowledge. We regret that this incident occurred and would like to express our sincere gratitude and thanks to the local Indigenous communities who have dedicated countless hours to this issue over the past year.”

“We look forward to continuing to work with communities as this important work continues to restore trust, improve understanding and build confidence in our industry. The AER assessment continues to confirm that there is no evidence of negative impacts to local wildlife or fish populations in nearby river systems and there are no risks to local communities' drinking water. We are confident that the actions we have taken to address the issue and the comprehensive measures we have taken to refine and strengthen our leachate monitoring and collection systems are working. We continue to monitor local Indigenous communities and provide them with regular updates and data. We remain committed to working to regain their trust,” Imperial continued.

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