A damning report has been released about inspectors with BC’s Energy Regulator (BCER) giving oil and gas wells a pass, despite leaking dangerous levels of gas.
The report was authored by The Narwhal and The Investigative Journalism Foundation. It says that 17 inspectors in BC are responsible for 6,594 active oil and gas wells, pipelines and other energy infrastructure, most of which are in Northeast BC.
The report goes on to say that during a six-year period from 2017 to 2023, inspectors noted thousands of potential violations, according to records released through freedom of information legislation.
The investigation found some sites were given a pass, despite notes indicating leaks of hydrogen and methane, often at levels considered highly explosive.
The Narwhal reported that in some cases the records revealed that inspectors noted potential violations, but the sites were still given a pass in the regulator’s official records.
In more than 1,000 instances, inspectors documented apparent environmental infractions, such as emissions leaks, fuel and chemical spills. Yet the report says the sites were still marked as compliant.
Some of the environmental infractions involves damage to wildlife, fish-bearing streams and other waterways.
The BC Energy Regulator is mostly funded by the oil and gas industry. The provincial agency is mandated to protect public safety and the environment from infractions by the energy industry.
In a statement to CJDC TV News the BCER pushed back against some of the accusations in the story.
The regulator said that many examples cited only show inspection comments — not the full context of the risk or the inspection outcome.
The BCER added that there were various reasons why some of the instances referenced did not result in formal non-compliance notices:
- Two were escalated to formal enforcement
- Two were referred to the environmental management team for remediation
- One was corrected on-site during the inspection
- Nine involved surface casing vent flows, which were not non-compliances at the time
- One was a joint inspection focused on education and information-sharing
- One was determined through our inspection to involve a matter that was outside our jurisdiction, so was referred to the appropriate agency to be addressed
The BCER said staff consider a range of factors in determining the most appropriate response, including the severity of actual or potential impacts to the environment and public safety, the factual circumstances of the non-compliance and the compliance history of the permit holder.
The regulator also said, as part of its commitment to transparency and continuous improvement, the BCER publishes inspection summaries, data, and reports on compliance management, inspections, and enforcement.
The statement went on to say, “the BCER remains focused on ensuring accountability, fairness, and the ongoing protection of people and the environment.”
In February, CJDC TV News aired a story about how a series of earthquakes, confirmed to be triggered by hydraulic fracking, led to a set of calves to be born prematurely at the Dead Horse Creek Cattle Ranch near Wonowon.