Petro-Canada was awarded the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP) Steward of Excellence award in June 2008 for environmental performance for our work to decommission flare pits and upgrade our flaring program in northeast British Columbia.
The awards, presented at CAPP’s annual Stewardship dinner, recognize exceptional efforts and performance by CAPP members.
“It’s an honour any time you’re singled out amongst the great work of your peers,” says Leon Sorenson, former vice-president for NANG’s Canadian operations during the decommissioning project and current senior director, technology in Petro-Canada’s International & Offshore business.
“We know there is growing concern for the impact the energy industry has on the environment,” says Sorenson. “That’s why we are committed to reducing the impact we have on it.”
Created to burn off flammable gas and liquids released at drilling and production sites, flare pits met regulatory requirements at the time. However, concerns raised by local Aboriginal groups around threats to wildlife in the area prompted the Company to address a potential liability.
As a result, Petro-Canada embarked on a five-year program to clean them up. Typical decommissioning involved water and sludge removal, folding of berms, and importing fill or soils scavenged from other areas of the lease to complete a final cap of each pit. Phase 2 environmental site assessments were completed at sites where sensitive environmental receptors, such as surface water bodies, were identified.
While not a regulatory requirement, Petro-Canada made the commitment to remove the pits rather than just fence them off. Every pit has since been secured, 105 have been decommissioned and three have been fenced due to constraints preventing their removal.
Petro-Canada continues to manage the sites and proceed with next steps in the remediation process — augmenting existing soil caps and potential seeding prior to site reclamation.
“I think what’s most valuable right now is the opportunity we have to promote best practices within our industry,” said Sorenson.
The potential exists for this process to be adopted across the province by industry peers as an example of how initiative shown by individual companies is not only the right thing to do, but can bolster the reputation of the industry.
