Alberta urged to find and fix ‘ fugitive’ gas leaks
Imagine taking all the cars in British Columbia and Alberta off the road to reduce greenhouse gases. Those seven million- plus vehicles have as much impact on global warming as the constant, small leaks of natural gas that escape from pipelines, valves and other equipment across Canada.
The small leaks, called fugitive emissions, are invisible and do not smell. But can be detected by infrared cameras in many places, from drilling operations to storage tanks to pipelines transporting natural gas. They are emerging as a major issue in the fight to slow climate change, says Chris Severson- Baker of the Pembina Institute, a clean energy think- tank.
The institute wants the provincial government, as part of its new climate change strategy, to require the oil and gas industry to reduce by half the current level of fugitive emissions, according to a new study obtained by the Journal.
Using existing technology, the oil and gas industry could reduce emissions by 16 megatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent in Alberta alone, says the new joint study by the Pembina Institute and the Texas branch of the U. S.- based Environmental Defense Fund.
The federal government promised seven years ago to come up with regulations to reduce fugitive emissions, but nothing happened, said Severson- Baker.
“So we think this should be a strong plank in the provincial climate change strategy,” he said.
Methane leaks, the biggest ingredient in natural gas, are much more powerful at trapping heat than carbon dioxide ( a greenhouse gas that comes from burning natural gas). Methane traps 84 times the heat of carbon dioxide over 20 years, said Severson- Baker.
“So if you get rid of them, you will have an immediate impact on climate change,” he said.
In the U. S., the controversy over fugitive emissions grew with the increase in shale gas production by hydraulic fracturing. Companies dispute how the emissions are measured and say cleanup is too costly.
But some states, such as Colorado, have instituted strict standards to capture fugitive emissions and have not caused an industry slowdown, said Drew Nelson of the Environmental Defense Fund in Austin.
Using carbon capture and storage to bury carbon emissions costs up to $ 100 a tonne. A much cheaper option is to reduce fugitive emissions with existing technology — about $ 7 to $ 9 per tonne, said Severson- Baker.
The report outlines dozens of possible fixes, from replacing old valves to more frequent repair of pipes.
The biggest single source in Alberta is venting ( releasing into the air) of natural gas that comes up with oil wells.
There is an opportunity to reduce emissions by 78 per cent by installing flares to burn off the methane.
More frequent leak detection and repair activity at compressor stations that gather gas could reduce fugitive emissions by 60 per cent, says the study by American consultant ICF International.
Canada is the world’s fourth largest methane emitter and Alberta is the 10th largest emitter with its large conventional oil and gas industry. ( The study does not include the oilsands.)
It’s a major problem in all fossil fuel producing nations, Nelson added.
If all the leaking methane from the world’s oil and gas industry were captured, it would be the equivalent of Norway’s gas production — the seventh largest in the world, he added.