Crews mop up after ‘small’ pipeline leak of oil and water

A cleanup is underway EDMONTON around a northern Alberta well site after an estimated 550 barrels of oil and water leaked out of a pipeline, the Alberta Energy Regulator says.

The release was detected Monday at a facility owned by Calgary’s Mount Bastion Oil & Gas Corp. 65 km northwest Red Earth Creek, or about 480 km north of Edmonton.

It’s the largest of seven pipeline spills reported in the area since 2015, all involving other companies.

“It’s mostly muskeg-type land. It’s better in the winter conditions in some ways, in terms of containment,” Mount Bastion president Curt Labelle said in an interview Wednesday. “It’s a small spill that’s generally on the lease, but also went off the lease.”

While the cold weather makes some work more difficult, it means the oil is less likely to seep into the ground, he said.

The product came out of a flow line from a single producing well, which has been shut down while crews deal with the incident, said Labelle, who didn’t know what caused the incident.

They’re setting up a perimeter fence to keep away wildlife, which appears unharmed by what happened, he said.

Workers will likely dig up the contaminated soil and haul it away in trucks to a lined disposal site before restoring the affected land.

The work might not be completed until the ground thaws next spring.

“We would say it’s a fairly small spill, comparatively. Obviously, it sounds like a lot, but it’s contained, so it should be cleaned up.”