Last I was in Edmonton, my host exclaimed loudly when his Blackberry told him the ERCB were going to have on their website all the documents submitted to tell how oil sand companies will reclaim and close their tailings impoundments. That promised to be a signal day in the history of tailings impoundment closure and regulatory compliance.
For those of you who do not follow the arcane process of regulatory compliance regarding oil sand tailings in Alberta, a briefing: the ERCB is charged with concurring in oil sands tailings impoundment closure. A while ago they issued a regulation that said in effect: place only dry tailings capable of supporting equipment; but if you have an existing impoundment where you cannot do this, please tell us what you will do, and then please do it.
Thus a tailings aficionado like me is agog at the prospect of seeing industry submittals telling how the industry will comply with this unique requirement. The ERCB website promises:
The Energy Resources Conservation Board (ERCB) has received plans with dates for construction, use and closure of fluid tailings ponds from six Alberta oil sands operators as required by Directive 074: Tailings Performance Criteria and Requirements for Oil Sands Mining Schemes. Each of Albian Sands Energy Inc., Canadian Natural Resources Limited, Imperial Oil Resources Ventures Limited, Shell Canada Inc., Suncor Energy Ltd. and Syncrude have submitted tailings plans under Directive 074. The ERCB will now conduct a detailed and comprehensive technical review of the plans. The plans will not be approved until the ERCB is satisfied that they comply with ERCB requirements. Pending scanning into digital format, the plans will be available via the ERCB website. It is anticipated they will be available on Monday, October 5, 2009.
A mere ten days beyond the 5th and there is nothing on the ERCB site. Probably never will be, I guess. Too sensitive, too revealing, too confidential. Sad. Still I hope. Can you imagine the cornucopia? The plans from so many. The plans for so much. A new insight into ideas from bright minds. Let us hope the ERCB has not changed their mind and they are merely inundated by paper they are unable to process. It would not be the first time a regulatory agency is inert in the face of reports.
The conference on Tailings and Mine Waste Management is upcoming in Banff, Alberta the first week of November. Try to be there if you can. But do not set your hopes too high that the ERCB will be there in kind or in web postings. All you can do is keep coming back to the ERCB website in hope and curiosity
Unfortunately the ERCB will get responses from four different companies each with a different concept of what works best for dealing with tailings.
This will then give the NGO’s fodder to say that the oilsand industry really doesn’t know how to deal with the tailings and all the operators are flailing about deciding what to do and hence the ERCB has been approving projects on a hope and a prayer.
Fred:
Thanks for coment. AN interestign point you make. It would help in the industry were able to mount a common front.
Jack A Caldwell
Jack A. Caldwell
Email: jcaldwell@infomine.com Voice: +1.604.683.2037 ext. 277 Fax: +1.604.681.4166 http://www.infomine.com
If I remember well, the ERCB being understaffed and under-resourced to carry its mandate is nothing new under the sun. I think historically, the only time it probably had resource commensurate to the workload that it is expected to carry was in late 2008 when oil sands project applications were being withdrawn massively because of market conditions.
One way or another, the information will have to be released. I can’t imagine the public backlash that would occur from the ERCB not releasing it.
I see that Suncor has submitted their tailings plan and it is available. No longer using CT and going to layering & drying.