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CALGARY – Alberta’s Energy Regulator says a spill in Suncor Energy’s Fort Hills tar sands lasted more than a year, releasing only about 10,000 cubic metres of surface runoff from a containment pond.
The regulator said that on Oct. 9, the power company reported an “unplanned discharge” of about 662 cubic meters from the pond adjacent to Fort Hills into the Athabasca River.
But on Nov. 24, Suncor informed the regulator that the spill was most likely much larger than originally reported and that it could have been tapering since June 2022 due to a faulty valve.
The regulator said it visited the site and found that the valve was not leaking recently, adding that it would review sampling data from June 2022 to November 2023.
Suncor sampled the pond’s water quality, the effects of which indicated that the water discharged into the river “met the discharge criteria. “
It specifies that the pond from which the water was discharged “is not similar to mining, extraction or tailings processes, and comprises precipitation and meltwater from snowmelt. “
This report via The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 25, 2023.
Companies in this story: (TSX: SU)
The Canadian Press