Air Quality

Air quality is affected by emissions created from human activity and natural events as well as weather and topography. Emissions from oil sands operations are strongly regulated and are subject to ongoing monitoring, reporting and penalties for non-compliance.

Stakeholders tell us air quality is an important issue, especially for those who live or work next to emission sources such as flares, or can detect odours.

ConocoPhillips Canada uses steam-assisted gravity drainage oil sands production, which uses natural gas as a fuel source to create steam. While natural gas is an abundant and clean burning fuel, its combustion produces air pollutants as well as greenhouse gas emissions. Air pollutants can potentially impact local ambient air quality and we consider this an important issue to manage. We continually evaluate new ways to reduce the steam-oil ratio and improve fuel-gas efficiency in our operations, which helps manage air pollutant emissions associated with the steam-assisted gravity drainage process.

A major air pollutant from Surmont is sulphur dioxide, which is produced when natural gas is combusted. With the construction of Surmont Phase 2 we will use sulphur recovery, which will reduce our overall sulphur emissions.

Approval Requirements

Steam-assisted gravity drainage operations are regulated by Alberta Environment. Our facilities are operated to meet the Alberta Ambient Air Quality Objectives, which are designed to protect human health and minimize environmental impacts. We monitor emissions as part of our project approval, which includes air pollutants (oxides of nitrogen, sulphur dioxide and, hydrogen sulphide). Monitoring results are reported both monthly and annually to Alberta Environment.

At our Surmont Phase 1 facility, we conduct the following monitoring as per our approval requirements:

• Continuous emissions monitoring - Continuous emissions monitoring uses an online analyzer to measure oxides of nitrogen emissions from one of the steam generators as per the Alberta Environment approval.
• Manual stack surveys - Manual stack surveys are conducted annually to test for oxides of nitrogen on the remaining steam generators and to confirm they are operating within the limits outlined in the approval.
• Passive air monitoring - Passive air monitoring stations are set up around the boundary of the facility to confirm the ambient air quality guidelines are met for sulphur dioxide and hydrogen sulphide.
• Ambient air monitoring - An ambient air monitoring station is set up at the facility for three months of the year to verify the facility is operating within the ambient air quality guidelines. The ambient air monitoring station monitors for parameters such as sulphur dioxide, hydrogen sulphide, oxides of nitrogen, wind speed, wind direction and temperature.

Fugitive Emissions Monitoring Program

The term ‘fugitive emissions’ refers to the loss of hydrocarbon product, including methane, propane and volatile organic compounds to the atmosphere from leaks in our production facilities and pipelines from valves, flanges and seals. These are unintentional losses due to normal wear and tear on the facility, manufacturing defects and corrosion.

At the Surmont Phase 1 facility, we conduct an annual fugitive emissions inspection as part our Alberta Environment approval. This program identifies unintentional natural gas and volatile organic compound leaks at the facility and is completed by an independent third-party consultant. The consultant uses an infrared gas camera to identify the leaks, which are quantified using hand-held measurement and analytical equipment. Identified leaks are provided in a report from the consultant to our operations team. These leaks are reviewed and prioritized by operations personnel and repaired accordingly. Repairs are tracked in the facility’s maintenance tracking system.

Regional Monitoring

In 2009, ConocoPhillips Canada joined the Wood Buffalo Environmental Association, which conducts regional ambient air quality monitoring, terrestrial ecosystem effects monitoring and human exposure monitoring.

Regional ambient air quality monitoring is concentrated near the oil sands mining operations, in Fort McMurray and in the communities north of Fort McMurray. There is one ambient air quality monitoring station in Anzac. There is no Wood Buffalo Environmental Association monitoring south of Anzac.

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Human exposure monitoring is operated in partnership with Alberta Health and Wellness on behalf of the people who live and work in the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo. This program has monitored, recorded and examined personal exposure of air contaminants in the Wood Buffalo region. Monitoring results are posted on the Wood Buffalo Environmental Association website. The human exposure monitoring program is currently suspended and under review to determine if it fits with Wood Buffalo Environmental Association’s mandate.

While monitoring efforts are currently focused north of our leases, the Wood Buffalo Environmental Association will expand its regional network further to the south as more steam-assisted gravity drainage producers in the south become members of the organization. This practical expansion will provide more applicable data for use by ConocoPhillips Canada.