HOW WE’RE DOING
as compared to 2009, continuing a five-year reduction trend in SO2 emissions intensity. SO2 emissions intensity has declined by 29 per cent since 2006. The SO2 emissions intensity was lower due to improved process stability and better sulphur recovery technology at new facilities. In western Canada the SO2 emissions intensity has decreased by 24 per cent since 2006 with a decrease of seven per cent in 2010 compared to 2009. Absolute oil sands GHG emissions are 6.5 per cent of Canada’s GHG emissions and 0.1 per cent of global GHG emissions. Absolute GHG emissions from Canada’s oil and gas sector continued to increase in 2010, to 102 megatonnes. This was a result of overall production growth in oil sands and unconventional gas as well as production shifting from conventional to unconventional reserves. Unconventional reserves often require enhanced production techniques that use more energy and consequently generate more GHGs than would be generated through the production of conventional reserves. Overall GHG emissions intensity (GHG emissions per barrel equivalent of production) increased about three per cent from 2009 to 2010, and has increased by about 19 per cent over the past five years. This is largely due to the shift in production from conventional to unconventional sources, including oil sands, which require more energy to produce. In the oil sands, GHG emissions intensity (GHG emissions per barrel of oil sands production) increased by two per cent from 2009 after two years of decreasing emissions intensities. In the remainder of western Canada, GHG emissions intensity increased for the third consecutive year and by 12 per cent from 2009. GHG emissions intensity also increased in Atlantic Canada for the third consecutive year, increasing by 11 per cent in 2010 as compared to 2009.
Water
In 2009, CAPP first introduced mandatory water reporting to provide a more complete picture of member performance as it pertains to water. For this reason, reliable longer term historical CAPP data relating to water is unavailable. For the purpose of this report and to establish trends, we have therefore accessed information from government sources to supplement CAPP data. The amount of fresh water used in oil sands mining is highly dependent on the timing of new mine start-ups and the overall phasing of mine developments. While mining production increased four per cent from 2009 to 2010, fresh water withdrawal dropped by six per cent. In 2010, 3.1 barrels of fresh water were used to produce one barrel of oil from oil sands mining projects. In 2006 it took 2.7 barrels of water to produce one barrel of oil from oil sands mining projects, and in 2008 fresh water use per barrel increased significantly due to start-up of new mining operations. Oil sands mining withdrawals from the Athabasca River were less than three per cent of the lowest weekly winter flow in 2010. In 2010, only 0.4 barrels of fresh water were used to produce one barrel of oil from oil sands in situ projects. This is the lowest rate of fresh water withdrawal per barrel of production the industry has achieved and is due to improvements in recycling rates (upwards of 90 per cent) and replacing fresh water with non-fresh water to generate steam wherever feasible. In 2010, 0.6 barrels of fresh water were used to produce one barrel of conventional oil in Alberta. Fresh water withdrawal per barrel of production has remained consistently low (~0.6 barrels) over the last five years. In 2010, CAPP members voluntarily reported on water reuse in western Canada shale gas and tight oil and gas plays for the first time. Based on the data received in 2010, four per cent of water was reused in these projects. The industry recognizes the level of reuse must be improved and is advancing a number of initiatives to address this issue.
Land
Total well count (active plus inactive wells) in western Canada in 2010 was 281,933 wells. In 2006, this number was 250,422 wells. This indicates that industry is drilling new wells at a faster rate than it is reclaiming existing wells. In 2010, CAPP members reported a total of 19,625 wells in western Canada that were either undergoing active reclamation or are in the monitoring stages of reclamation in preparation for certification. This demonstrates the different phases of reclamation work that must be done for well-sites before earning reclamation certification or release from regulators. In 2010, 1,594 conventional abandoned wells earned reclamation certification in western Canada, a 10 per cent increase from 2009. Over the past five years, the number of annual reclamation certificates issued by governments across the oil and gas industry has fluctuated based largely on industry activity. The economic recession experienced throughout 2008 – 2009 had a significant impact on overall budgets and in consequence, affected reclamation activity. The pace of reclamation has increased in 2010, as evidenced by the increase in certificates issued in 2010. Total active footprint (land cleared, disturbed and being reclaimed for oil sands mining operations) was 71,497 hectares at the end of 2010, an increase of six per cent from 2009. Mineable oil sands are a growing, longterm resource, so the total active footprint is expected to grow for a number of years. Some 90 per cent of the total active footprint is cleared and disturbed land and 10 per cent is being reclaimed.