Alberta's Orphan Well Crisis

Alberta has hundreds of thousands of abandoned, inactive, and "orphan" wells across the province. Like most other jurisdictions, it requires polluters, including oil and gas operators, to pay cleanup costs once operations cease.  Unfortunately, legislation allows O&G operators to keep passing on these costs to less able entities, and most governments have not enforced their own regulations. 

In this half-day mini-course, Dr. David Swann and two other experts will outline the tremendous liabilities that are falling to the public and future generations, as delays hamper essential cleanup (reclamation) of inactive sites, facilities, and pipelines, blocking land development. This also places both the environment and human health at risk. There will be a short comment and discussion time.