First Nation shares frustration over water incident at Kearl oilsands mine in northern Alberta
Global News
The chief of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation is voicing his concern over yet another incident at the Kearl oilsands facility.
The chief of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation is voicing his concern over yet another incident at the Kearl oilsands facility, located about a 90-minute drive north of Fort McMurray.
In a statement issued Thursday, Chief Allan Adam said the Nov. 13 incident, involving water, has “once again impacted the environment on our traditional territories.”
A spokesperson with Imperial told Global News runoff passing through a culvert partially eroded an area around that culvert which resulted in the water collecting sediment from nearby soil.
Imperial said it happened on Nov. 13, and was quickly stopped by field personnel who placed materials in the channel to slow the flow of the water and prevent further migration of the sediment.
A spokesperson for the company said the water was surface water runoff from a settling pond on Imperial’s property and clarified that the water was not used in the processing of oil. The company said it is responsible for testing all water on its Kearl site before releasing it, and in this case the runoff would have been tested for sediment level before it was released. The sediment then entered afterwards with the soil erosion at the culvert site.
“Field data collected from the channel on Nov. 14 indicated that levels of sediment were back below the allowable limit,” said Lisa Schmidt, a spokesperson with Imperial. “We are working to conduct the necessary repairs and we will continue routine sampling to ensure sediment levels remain within the allowable limit for the Muskeg River as prescribed by the (Alberta Energy) Regulator.”
The AER said the incident involved “a release of water.” In total, the release involved about 670,000 litres of water.
Adam said the water contained approximately 140 mg of suspended solids per litre, more than four times the legal limit.