Comment by Barb Ryan, resident in Frac Central Fox Creek Alberta:
Wow, not only did reeve Angela Aalbers repeat the same thing “not our jurisdiction,” in a few ways, over and over BUT Dan Singleton wrote it over and over.
Heaven forbid that a municipality might wake up to the fact that they COULD dispute / question the process instead of capitulating to it.
Makes them both look like they have an agenda to do and say nothing.
Letter: McDougal Flats residents should keep up fight for water, Average frack site can use up to six million gallons of water and there has been close to 2,000 wells fracked in Alberta this past year by Darrel Florence, Letter to the Editor Dec 30, 2023, MountainViewToday
Re: Concerns raised with water diversion for fracking in Mountain View County
I totally agree with and support the McDougal Flats residents concerns for the possible loss of their fresh water source.
Fresh water access is critical for our survival and any potential loss must be taken seriously as there is not an endless supply like our energy regulator seems to think by continually issuing permits for Fracking.
In addition to water table declines fracking can also create small earthquakes that can disrupt infrastructures such as pipelines, water lines and underground cables as well as above ground ones as roads and power lines.
The average frack site can use up to six million gallons of water and there has been close to 2,000 wells fracked in Alberta this past year and over 180,000 since fracking was first approved. Can you imagine how much water has been lost to Albertans as a result? Likely equivalent to one of the great lakes.
In addition fracking can ruin water supplies by letting methane into the eater sources as described in Andrew Nikiforuk’s book “Slick Water which describes home owners in the Rosebud area as being able to light their water taps due to the methane in the water. Of course now their water supply is totally unusable.
If the Alberta government is unable to stop fracking due to their financial obligation to the oil and gas industry, then at least they should not allow it in settled areas where peoples well being could be at risk as a result of fracking – and McDougal Flats is such an at risk area.
It again emphasizes the truth of John Valiant’s comments in his recent book that we are not living in a society where our government controls the resource businesses, but are living in a society where the resource businesses control our government.
If the fracking at McDougal Flats is allowed to go ahead this just proves that John Valiant is absolutely right.
McDougal Flats keep up the fight for lots of clean safe fresh drinking water and no fracking.
Darrel Florence,
Cremona
Concerns raised with water diversion for fracking in Mountain View County, “I don’t want to see this happen.” – McDougal Flats resident Murray Griffin by Dan Singleton, Dec 13, 2023, MountainViewToday
MOUNTAIN VIEW COUNTY – McDougal Flats residents worried about water diversion from the local aquifer to a well fracking project north of Highway 584 taking place this month should voice their concerns with the minister of Environment and Protected Areas, says reeve Angela Aalbers.
“I think our residents are very informed as to the channels where they would direct their issues and complaints, so I’m sure if they have complaints they will be going directly to Alberta Environment and Protected Areas,” said Aalbers.
The province has issued a temporary diversion licence for the transfer of water from a gravel pit pond in the McDougal Flats area of the county to the well site at 16-35-33-6. A water pipeline has been laid in ditches along the 22 kilometre route.
Fracking involves the injection of water under high pressure into wells which breaks up the formation and allows oil and/gas to flow more freely.
Murray Griffin is a McDougal Flats resident. He calls the removal of drinking water from the local aquifer wholly unacceptable.
“There’s a lot of people out here who have shallow wells, only 40 feet deep or so, and if they take that much water out, I’m afraid there are a bunch of wells that are going to go dry,” Griffin told the Albertan.
After Encana/Ovintiv’s illegal aquifer fracs at Rosebud, not only were most water wells in the community contaminated with methane and toxic chemicals not found naturally in well water and used in frac’ing, some water wells went dry. They never recovered.
“That’s right in middle of the aquifer and the water table is very low as it is.”
Griffin says he was told by a company representative that about six million gallons, or about 25,000 cubic metres, of water will be taken from the aquifer for the fracking project.
“Why are they using drinking water instead of river water? To take fresh water that is our drinking water, and even the Town of Sundre’s drinking water, and pour it down the well when they could be taking it from the river, I’ve got a real problem with it,” he said.
“There has to be a little morality in the country to not put people in stress like this, I would think. I don’t want to see this happen.”
Griffin says several of his neighbours are also concerned with the water removal from the local aquifer.
Mountain View County has issued a road use agreement for the project, which allows for the water pipeline to be placed in county ditches.
“Water pipelines are allowed under the county’s road use agreements with industry,” said Jeff Holmes, county chief administrative officer. “In many situations water lines are preferred over truck hauls as there is less damage to road infrastructure, and less impact on public traffic.
“All approvals for drilling wells and use of water for fracking operations are approved by the provincial government, and provincial approvals must be in place before the county will enter into a road use agreement for placement of water lines in the road right of way.”
For her part, reeve Angela Aalbers says the municipality has no say in the issuance of water diversion licences.
“The total water that will come out of the aquifer is all under provincial jurisdiction,” said Aalbers.
“They issue the temporary diversion licence and they don’t engage with the municipality at all. We leave that to the jurisdiction of Alberta Environment and they determine what the aquifer can and cannot sustain.”Pathetic water rape enabling coward.
Asked if she is concerned that fresh water is being diverted from the aquifer to oil and gas operations, she said, “I think there’s always a concern from the public that fresh water is being used for fracking. However it is a provincial jurisdiction and there really isn’t anything that the municipality can do about.Bullshit! Past MountainView County Councillor Paddy Munro courageously documented and publicly presented on the many harms caused by frac’ing, and publicly stated they constitute crimes against humanity.
“We have to be confident that the issuance of this temporary diversion licence was also part of the consideration of the Minister of Environment and Protected Areas when she is looking at drought mitigations.”Any human truly looking at drought mitigation would criminalize frac’ing.
A call to Tourmaline Oil, the company undertaking the project, was not immediately returned.
Colette B. Dec 13, 2023:
When will people realize that the UCP government does not care about you or your water???
Refer also to:
2024: Alberta government warning municipalities about water use this year due to drought, Letter from environment minister asks municipalities to come up with a plan A super simple highly economic plan would be to ban frac’ing!
Alberta’s environment minister is reaching out to municipalities asking them to find ways to use less water this year in light of the province’s drought.
In a letter sent Dec. 20, Rebecca Schulz asked municipal leaders to develop a water shortage plan, monitor water intake, and review their water licences to see if there are any limits set during drought conditions.
She also asked municipal water managers to be on standby in case they are contacted by the province’s new drought command team.
In an interview with CBC News, Schulz said her ministry wants to act proactively and get municipalities to look now at ways they can conserve water.
“We’re really asking them to gather that information sooner rather than later… and then look at a plan to manage this across the province,” she said. …
Frac water hoses in NEBC, photos by Will Koop
2023: Frac’d to hell Alberta dries up. Fast.
2015:
2013: The Campbells
Water hoarding for frac’ing in the Lochend, Alberta
A proportion (25% to 100%) of the water used in hydraulic fracturing is not recovered, and consequently this water is lost permanently to re-use, which differs from some other water uses in which water can be recovered and processed for re-use.
US EPA is as useless as Alberta’s AER and Alberta Environment/gov’t at protecting water from frac’ers.
2012: MountainView Co Councillor Paddy Munro presents on frac harms and water contamination cases, calls them crimes against humanity at official county council meeting
2006:
Ernst’s well water after Encana frac’d Rosebud’s drinking water aquifers
Twenty years post illegal aquifer frac’s by Encanan/Ovintiv, enabled by AER and Alberta Environment, Ernst is still hauling alternate water at Rosebud, Alberta