Ecologist calls for new leadership at AER
One expert is calling for a change in leadership at the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER).
That’s because the government agency has significantly underestimated the frequency and size of tailings spills in the province’s oilsands region, said ecologist Dr. Kevin Timoney.
“The AER’s claims of no environmental impacts at any tailings spills lack corroborative environmental data,” read part of the abstract of the study. “Claims of perfect spill recovery in 75% of tailings spills are not supported by credible evidence.”
Timoney said that while the AER claimed routine inspections of spills, only approximately 3.2 per cent of reported tailings spills are inspected.
“The AER’s tailings spill data lack the ecological, biological, and chemical data required to assess and manage the environmental impacts of tailings spills. Approximately 41–54 per cent of tailings spill sites with photographic documentation showed evidence of environmental harm,” head said the report titled Regulatory failure to monitor and manage the impacts of tailings spills, Alberta, Canada, published in Springer Nature.
“If similar rates of harm in relation to tailings spill volumes apply to spills lacking photographic evidence, environmental harm would be inferred in 23–36 per cent of those spills.”
The study used data from the Alberta Environmental Management System (EMS) between 1996-2012, the AER’s FIS data going back to 1975, and a freedom of information request submitted to the AER in June 2023.
Citing the study, City News noted that Of the 514 tailings spills reported by AER’s field surveillance inspection system (FIS), nearly 302,000 cubic metres (301,755,000 litres or 301,755 m3) were released, which translates to an average of 77.4 reported spills a year.
For example, in 2018, the AER reported 44,596 m³ – or 44 million litres – was spilled, while the data Timoney acquired said it was 4,459,680 m3 – or 4.4 billion litres. That’s 100 times larger than the total volume of the 514 reported tailings spills.
Also, while FIS data shows 514 spills, the data Timoney acquired presents 989 primary spills, with 627 being tailings, 215 being process water, and 89 being bitumen slurry.
City News noted that the following companies are behind a large part of the spills:
- Suncor - responsible for about 32 per cent of tailings spills, along with around 49 per cent of the spill volume.
- Canadian Natural Resources Ltd (CNR) - responsible for about 15 per cent of spills and 6 per cent of volume
- Shell - responsible for nearly 15 per cent of spills and around 10.5 per cent of the volume.
- Imperial Oil - responsible for nearly 10 per cent of spills and 10 per cent of volume
- Canadian Natural Upgrading (CNUL) - responsible for 5.1 per cent of spills and 4.5 per cent of the volume respectively.
Call for change in leadership
With his findings, Timoney is now calling for a change in leadership at AER.
“They really need to have a new regulator,” says Timoney. “We can’t fix the AER because it’s controlled by the industry it’s attempting to regulate.”
In a statement to CityNews, the Ministry of Environment says Alberta’s oilsands monitoring system is one of the best in the world.
“Alberta’s oilsands are one of the most highly monitored in the world, and there are clear, mandatory processes in place to prevent spills and to respond quickly if unplanned releases do occur,” reads the statement from press secretary Ryan Fournier.
“We expect the AER to do its job and manage these incidents in a timely and effective way.”
Meanwhile, AER was still reviewing the study. However, Renato Gandia, a spokesperson for AER, said that staff do inspect tailings spills, according to the City News report.
