Calgary Herald

Cleanup begins after northern pipeline spews crude, water

- JURIS GRANEY

EDMONTON A cleanup operation is underway in northern Alberta after 88,000 litres of crude oil and produced water was released from a pipeline.

The province’s Alberta Energy Regulator said the spill of 44,000 litres of crude oil and 44,000 litres of salt and produced water happened near Red Earth Creek, located about 400 kilometres north of Edmonton.

In a statement Wednesday, the company said they had notified the regulator and other area stakeholde­rs that the emulsion release was about 98 per cent produced water and two per cent oil.

“The affected area has been contained and delineated and removal of released fluids continue,” Harvest Operations spokesman Greg Foofat said in an email.

“Harvest will undertake all steps necessary to ensure the affected area is fully remediated in accordance with AER requiremen­ts.

“We remain committed to protecting

We remain committed to protecting the environmen­t and the health and well-being of the public.

the environmen­t and the health and well-being of the public through every decision and action and will apply learnings to mitigate the risk of an incident occurring in the future.”

So far any impact on wildlife or water bodies remains unknown, Foofat said.

In July, Predator Oil Ltd. reported a pipeline had failed near Red Earth Creek, releasing about 150,000 litres of crude oil and salt and produced water.

According to the AER, the emulsion in that spill was approximat­ely 25-30 per cent oil and 70-75 per cent water.

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