Repurposing Land in Alberta May Represent Alternative Solutions with a Number of Environmental and Economic Benefits
The current path to land use reclamation of legacy oil and gas sites in Alberta is often a long one, imposing specific requirements on regulatees during the suspension, abandonment, remediation and reclamation stages of the process. Companies often hold wells in abandonment status to avoid or delay clean-up costs and many such companies are struggling financially. Despite having undergone reform, this regime has resulted in approximately 97,000 inactive wells, 71,000 abandoned wells, and 2950 orphan wells.
However, there are potential land uses that should be considered in respect of assessing (or reassessing) the status of these wells and associated infrastructure within the reclamation process. These new and emerging land uses may represent alternative solutions with a number of environmental and economic benefits.
By David McGillivray, Lorne Rollheiser, and Natasha Tames, JWN