Survey finds oilsands environmental monitoring ineffective after 10 years
CBC
Alberta doesn't have a good grasp of the overall environmental impacts of the oilsands a decade after implementing monitoring that was supposed to provide it, internal government documents suggest.
In July, Alberta Environment and Parks surveyed dozens of scientists and other participants in the Oilsands Monitoring Program, a joint federal-provincial program that has run under various names since 2012 and is funded by an annual $50-million levy from industry. A copy of that survey was obtained by The Canadian Press.
Of the 112 people surveyed, 26 responded. They expressed concerns from a lack of overall direction to poor communication to an arbitrary and inadequate funding cap being gradually nibbled away by inflation.
"We still have significant concerns with the ... program's ability to develop a robust, world-class monitoring program as intended," said a response from the Alberta Environmental Network, which has delegates on several of the program's technical committees.
It points out that funding has remained unchanged since 2012 despite inflation, amounting to a nearly nine-per-cent cut.
"We know of no independent analysis suggesting $50 million is adequate," the network said.
As a result, it says, crucial questions are going unanswered.
Despite the fact wetlands cover about a quarter of the oilsands area, funding for wetlands research was more than halved in 2021-22 after being cut two-thirds the previous year. Terrestrial monitoring, which looks into the status of plants and animals, was cut by two-thirds for the coming year after a 50 per cent cut last year.
The network said no research has been funded into the risk posed by industry's toxic tailings ponds.
No one from Alberta Environment and Parks responded to a request for comment on the survey.
Most survey respondents reported there was little communication and co-ordination between different scientific groups.
"Communication in the [program] sucks," one respondent wrote.
"It is clear that members of committees have no clear direction on the purpose and priorities of the program," wrote another.
Several said the program gathered useful data, but did nothing with it.
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