Ernst vs AER Supreme Court of Canada hearing followed by 4.8M quake in AER’s Immoral Blanket Approval Frac Experiment Gone Wild, felt in St. Albert, 280km away

2014 06 09: St. Albert residents sitting on abandoned oil and gas wells

Below list of 16 quakes at Fox Creek, Alberta from January 8 – 12, 2016, with the 4.8M felt in St. Albert

2015 Chevron funded Fox Creek water tower mural, fox quake

Fox Creek Water Tower, Mural paid by Chevron. Did Chevron’s frac quakes crack it?

Does big oil propaganda get any better than this?

From AER Seismicity Spotlight Page http://www.aer.ca/about-aer/spotlight-on/seismicity-in-alberta

2016 01 12 AGS, AER, 16 quakes at Fox Creek since Jan 8, 2016, including 4.8M

Fox Creek mayor concerned by oilpatch impacts after earthquake by Bob Webber, The Canadian Press, January 13, 2016, Global News

FOX CREEK, Alta. – The mayor of an Alberta town in an area of heavy hydraulic fracking is expressing concern over the oil industry’s impact after yet another earthquake hit his community.

“Fox Creek town council is very concerned,” wrote mayor Jim Ahn in a letter to reporters. “It seems industry and the provincial government have been turning a blind eye as to what has been going on in our area.”

Fox Creek…was hit Tuesday by another earthquake. The quake measured 4.8 on the Richter scale, big enough to rumble building and wag pictures on the wall and count as Alberta’s largest.

It was the town’s 367th seismic event since January 2015.

While the Alberta Energy Regulator hasn’t definitively linked the activity to the amount of fracking in the area, it has implemented special regulations for fracking in the area and is conducting research into the issue.

But earthquakes aren’t the only thing Ahn is concerned about.

“We have industry pulling water from our rivers, streams and lakes at rates we feel far exceed their capabilities to replenish themselves,” he wrote.

“We do not want to be left with swamps that were once prize trophy lakes.”

2015 Chevron funded Fox Creek water tower mural, river, what when frac'ing dries them all up

Fox Creek Water Tower Mural, Paid by Chevron.

[And if the quakes alter the subsurface and cause aquifers to drop or lakes to drain? Who’s monitoring the cumulative impacts from peforating, fracing; waste injection; CO2, steam, water injection for enhanced oil recovery in Alberta? No one, it seems, except perhaps harmed citizens like Ann Craft and gag & shut up lawyers]

2015 Chevron funded Fox Creek water tower mural, fishing close up, what when fracing dries up the creeks, rivers, water wells

The town has had to spend $300,000 to truck in water after levels in the aquifers it normally depends on fell too low, said Ahn. The town has received whistleblower reports of drilling rig leaks that could affect Fox Creek’s water supply and received contradictory messages from those involved.

Ahn said the town fears government and regulatory officials don’t have its best interests at heart.

“We have had many experts in these fields explain to us that what is happening has been examined and explored for years,” he wrote. “We are still very worried that we, the town of Fox Creek, will be the ones left that will have to try and make a life here after all the activity is gone.”

Fox Creek is trying to sell itself as a good place to start a business and raise a family and news about well blowouts and earthquakes don’t help, Ahn said.

“We have spent millions of dollars to try and attract people to come here … what we do not need is negative headlines.”

Ahn said council has invited Alberta Premier Rachel Notley to visit the town and speak with council about its concerns. Notley has not yet replied, he said. The premier is asking that an Alberta Energy Regulator review of fracking be sped up. [So that frac’ers can frenzy away with harming more communities, families and aquifers by the “Shut the Frack Up,” industry-funded, legally immune, “No Duty of Care” AER deregulating more while lying and using “reviews” to let companies make fluffy public promises to adhere to voluntary, unenforceable “best practices,” that mean nothing so that they can more quickly resume frac’ing after causing bigger and bigger frac quakes?]

“My officials have been in touch with the AER to find out exactly what the situation is and where we can get more details on that,” Notley said Tuesday. “Generally speaking the AER has been engaged in a review of fracking in particular as it relates to this issue and I’ll be asking them to speed that review up a little bit more to come up with some recommendations that we can consider sooner rather than later.”

Those in the industry believe work should be done safely, but also worry what the province – and the country – would look like without fracking. “It’s very important. It sustains the community right now,” Brett Lamb, general manager of Noble Drilling, said. “Fox Creek is driven by the oil and gas industry and fracking is what is driving industry right now.”

[Let’s get this straight: We’ll sustain communities by destroying the ground they’re built on? Cause gases to migrate into homes and businesses putting people at risk of death by fire, explosion, asphyxiation, poisoning while they sleep, eat, work and play?]

He’s worried about what might happen if the government decided to shut it down. “If fracking left Fox Creek or Alberta or Canada in general, it would really be a major crush to the industry. The price of oil is bad enough as it is. There’s a lot of unemployed Albertans right now.”

“The government needs to look at it, but they need to look at it responsibly.” [Emphasis added]

2015 Chevron funded Fox Creek water tower mural, did fracking crack it2

Fox Creek Water Tower, Mural paid by Chevron. Did Chevron’s frac quakes crack it?

Updated: January 12, 2016 10:01 pm
St. Albert feels tremors from earthquake near Fox Creek by Emily Mertz and Caley Ramsay, Global News

EDMONTON – Tremors from an earthquake near Fox Creek, Alta. Tuesday were felt as far away as St. Albert, about 280 kilometres away. [THAT’S MIGHTY STRONG DOOR SLAMMING AND TRUCK DRIVING TO BE FELT THAT FAR AWAY!]

The Alberta Energy Regulator confirmed the 4.8-magnitude earthquake, and initially said it was caused by hydraulic fracking. But the AER later backed away, saying it could not confirm the cause, only that it happened in an area where fracking occurs.

The AER has sent a team of investigators to the site, owned by a company called Repsol. The company has ceased operations in the area and will not be allowed to resume fracking until AER gives the go-ahead, according to AER spokesperson Carrie Rosa.

In a statement to Global News, Repsol said it was conducting hydraulic fracturing operations at the site when the earthquake occurred.

The company is investigating the event, which includes reviewing and analyzing available geological and geophysical data, as well as the onsite seismic monitoring data. Operations will not resume at this location until a full assessment of the event has been completed and approval has been received from the AER,” Brent Anderson, spokesperson with Repsol Oil & Gas Canada, said.

Natural Resources Canada’s preliminary findings measured the earthquake at a 4.5 magnitude. NRC said the earthquake happened at 11:27 a.m. (MST) Tuesday about 31 kilometres west of Fox Creek. NRC said the quake was “lightly felt” in Fox Creek and St. Albert. There were no reports of damage.

“It felt like a large truck driving by,” said Fox Creek operations manager Roy Dell. “Some saw pictures shake on the wall. The Town of Fox Creek is disappointed to hear of another seismic event.”

Cory Sinclair works for the City of St. Albert. He was on the third floor of St. Albert Place when he felt a jolt at around 11:30 a.m.

“I felt a bit of a shake in the building and they were doing a bit of work on the main floor so I thought perhaps it was associated with that, and there was also a door just down the hall so I thought someone has slammed that door,” Sinclair said. “But afterwards I realized it was in fact a tremor that we had felt.” Sinclair said it was one single shake, not a continued shake.

“Someone had jokingly said that it might have been an earthquake, but we never suspected that at all until one of our colleagues informed us that they had heard report of seismic activity,” Sinclair said.

Ken Munroe works in St. Albert’s Campbell Business Park. He said he was sitting at his desk, working away, when he felt the quake.

“Suddenly the building shook,” he said. “It was just a bump… It felt like a truck hit the wall or something like that. It was a noticeable enough bump that the monitors shook a little bit.”

Munroe said the shake was very quick and only lasted about two seconds.

“We were sort of thinking, ‘Is it an earthquake? Is it an aftershock? How big is it? Or is it just something falling on the floor?’” he said with a laugh.

“The funny thing is that I said, ‘This feels like an earthquake.’ And, you know, everyone just started laughing at me.”

It’s not unusual for earthquakes to be reported in the Fox Creek area. There have been about 200 quakes in the area since December 2013. Alberta averages 30 earthquakes each year.

Last year, there were two 4.4 magnitude earthquakes in the area. Authorities said both quakes were the result of hydraulic fracturing in the oil and gas industry.

… The AER announced new requirements in February 2015, after several seismic events in the Fox Creek area. If a seismic event measuring 4.0 or greater occurs within five kilometres of an operator, it must cease operations and inform the AER. If a seismic event between 2.0 and 4.0 occurs, operators must inform AER and invoke their response plan.

The AER reports three events measuring 4.0 or greater in 2015: Jan. 14 (4.23), Jan. 23 (4.61) and June 13 (4.26).

Fox Creek is 263 kilometres northwest of Edmonton.

With files from Slav Kornik, Sarah Kraus, Global News and The Canadian Press.

*Editor’s note: The Alberta Energy Regulator originally told Global News the earthquake was due to hydraulic fracking. However, the AER later said it could not confirm that. [Emphasis added]

SNAP BELOW TAKEN JANUARY 12, 2016 FROM AER COMPLIANCE DASHBOARD:

2016 01 12 Repsol felt 4.8M earthquake during frac job, 31 km west Fox Creek, AER-incident-report

2015 Chevron funded Fox Creek water tower mural, did fracking crack it, close up fracs

Fox Creek Water Tower, Mural paid by Chevron.

St. Albert feels tremors from earthquake near Fox Creek by Emily Mertz and Slav Kornik, January 12, 2016, Global News. Updated: 5:13 pm

EDMONTON – Tremors from an earthquake near Fox Creek, Alta. Tuesday were felt as far away as St. Albert, about 280 kilometres away.

The Alberta Energy Regulator confirmed the 4.8-magnitude earthquake, and initially said it was caused by hydraulic fracking. But the AER later backed away, saying it could not confirm the cause, only that it happened in an area where fracking occurs.

… The AER has sent a team of investigators to the site, owned by a company called Repsol. The company has ceased operations in the area and will not be allowed to resume fracking until AER gives the go-ahead, according to AER spokesperson Carrie Rosa.

Natural Resources Canada said the earthquake happened at 11:27 a.m. (MST) Tuesday about 31 kilometres west of Fox Creek.

NRC said the quake was “lightly felt” in Fox Creek and St. Albert. There were no reports of damage.

It’s not unusual for earthquakes to be reported in the Fox Creek area. There have been about 200 quakes in the area since December 2013. [Refer below] Alberta averages 30 earthquakes each year.

Last year, there were two 4.4 magnitude earthquakes in the area. Authorities said both quakes were the result of hydraulic fracturing in the oil and gas industry.

… The AER announced new requirements in February 2015, after several seismic events in the Fox Creek area. If a seismic event measuring 4.0 or greater occurs within five kilometres of an operator, it must cease operations and inform the AER. If a seismic event between 2.0 and 4.0 occurs, operators must inform AER and invoke their response plan.

2015 02 25 rainbows-header-stop light system in fox creek

Source: Catalyzethis

*Editor’s note: The Alberta Energy Regulator originally told Global News the earthquake was due to hydraulic fracking. However, the AER later said it could not confirm that.

2015 Chevron funded Fox Creek water tower mural, fishing, what when fracing dries up the creeks, rivers, water wells

Fox Creek Water Tower, Mural paid by Chevron. Frac’d fish anyone?

Fox Creek fracking operation closed indefinitely after earthquake, Magnitude 4.8 quake rattles area, but no injuries or damage reported, energy regulator says by CBC News, January 12, 2016 2:14 PM MT, Updated 6:55 PM MT

A hydraulic fracturing operation near Fox Creek, Alta., has been shut down after an earthquake hit the area Tuesday.

The magnitude 4.8 quake was reported at 11:27 a.m., says Alberta Energy Regulator, which ordered the shutdown of the Repsol Oil and Gas site 35 kilometres north of Fox Creek.

Carrie Rosa, spokeswoman for the regulator, says “the company has ceased operations … and they will not be allowed to resume operations until we have approved their plans.” [To keep fracing?]

Rosa added the company is working with the energy regulator to ensure all environmental and safety rules are followed.

Repsol did not return a call when contacted.

[This from CBC News updated article:

In a statement, Repsol confirmed the seismic event and said the company was conducting hydraulic fracturing operations at the time it happened.

“Repsol immediately shut down operations and reported the event to the AER and other local authorities,” the statement said.

“The company is investigating the event, which includes reviewing and analyzing available geological and geophysical data, as well as the onsite seismic monitoring data. Operations will not resume at this location until a full assessment of the event has been completed and approval has been received from the AER.” ]

There were no reports of injuries or damage to the site, Rosa said.

The energy regulator automatically shuts down a fracking site when an earthquake hits a magnitude of 4.0 or higher in the area in which a company is operating.

“It’s too soon to tell if it’s related to fracking,” said Camille Brillon, a seismologist with Natural Resources Canada. “It was a light earthquake that would have been felt.”

Earthquake ‘larger than normal’

Brillon added the quake was “quite large for the area, larger than normal.”

Jeffrey Gu, associate professor of geophysics at the University of Alberta, said the area surrounding Fox Creek has been experiencing a proliferation of quakes lately.

He estimates in the last six months there have been hundreds of quakes in the area ranging in magnitude from 2.0 to 3.0.

But it is not considered a risky area with a such low population, said Gu, who added that Fox Creek and the surrounding region is carefully monitored by the energy regulator.

“There are faults in this area that have been mapped, have been reported in that area, but nothing of significance,” he said.

“It’s a relatively safe area without major, major faults.”

Still, Gu said, there were two fairly large quakes in the area in January 2015, one of which had a magnitude of 4.4.

He wasn’t able to confirm that they were caused by fracking, but said it is “highly probable.”

The energy regulator said at the time that the 4.4 magnitude quake was likely caused by hydraulic fracturing.

The previous large quake near Fox Creek occurred on June 13, with a magnitude initially measured as 4.4. After some investigation the magnitude was set at 3.9, Gu said. [To keep the company that wanted to keep fracing happy?]

Could be largest quake in Canada

If it is revealed that fracking induced Tuesday’s 4.8 quake, Gu said, it would be the largest such quake in Canada’s history.

A 4.6 magnitude fracking-related earthquake in B.C. in August was confirmed by scientists as the largest so far in Canada, perhaps even the world.

Alberta Premier Rachel Notley said her officials are looking into Tuesday’s quake.

“The AER has been engaged in a review of fracking, in particular as it relates to this issue, and I’ll be asking them to speed that review … to come up with some recommendations that we can consider sooner than later.”

Area resident Jesse Christensen was in Fox Creek at the time of the quake.

“We were all just kind of standing around … and everybody just looked at each other and said, ‘Did you feel that?’

“It didn’t feel uneasy or anything,” he said. “It was just like some shaking through your feet a little bit, but not too much.”

Fox Creek, 263 kilometres northwest of Edmonton, is a town of about 2,000 people largely sustained by oil and gas development.  [Emphasis added]

2015 Chevron funded Fox Creek water tower mural, did fracking crack it, close up frac cracks w bear

Fox Creek Water Tower, Mural paid by Chevron. “Frac quake with Bear?”

Energy company halts operations after earthquake in Alberta fracking zone by The Canadian Press, January 12, 2016, The Globe and Mail

An energy company has stopped operating in a part of Alberta subject to heavy hydraulic fracking after the province’s energy regulator reported the area’s largest earthquake in more than a year.

“They have ceased operations and will not be able to resume until we have approved their mitigation plans,” Carrie Rosa of the Alberta Energy Regulator said Tuesday.

Rosa said final readings of the quake’s strength registered 4.8 on the Richter scale, which rates tremblors of that magnitude at the top of the “light” classification. They’re likely to be felt by most people in the area and may cause noticeable shaking and rattling of indoor objects.

No injury or damage was reported from the quake, which occurred about 35 kilometres west of Fox Creek.

Rosa said Repsol Oil and Gas won’t be able to resume operations until the regulator has approved its mitigation plans.

“We have to find out what was occurring at the time the seismic event happened,” she said. “We have investigators on the way to the site.”

Concerns about seismic activity in the Fox Creek area began in December 2014 when a series of 18 earthquakes between 2.7 and 3.7 in magnitude rumbled through. In January 2015, several shakers were recorded between magnitudes of 2.4 and 4.4.

The regulator responded in February by imposing new rules for the so-called Duvernay play near town.

“The order comes after several seismic events — possibly related to hydraulic fracturing — were recorded in the Fox Creek area,” the regulator said in a news release at the time.

Under the rules, companies must consider the likelihood of resulting earthquakes before starting to frack. Any seismic events greater than 4.0 on the Richter scale require an operator to shut down and notify the regulator. Quakes between 2.0 and 4.0 don’t prompt a shutdown, but an operator must still inform the regulator. No activity is required for anything less than 2.0.

The rules also require closer monitoring of seismic activity.

Alberta Premier Rachel Notley said she wants the regulator to speed up a review the NDP government has asked for into seismic activity in the area.

“My officials have been in touch with the AER to find out exactly what the situation is and we’re waiting to get more details,” Notley said in Edmonton.

“The AER has been engaged in a review of fracking, in particular as it relates to this issue, and I’ll be asking them to speed that review … to come up with some recommendations that we can consider sooner than later.

“What I’d like to see first of all is a report on what the evidence shows is the relationship between fracking and the seismic activity that we’ve observed up in Fox Creek.”

The regulator’s database shows there have been 366 seismic events in the region since January 2015.

2015 Chevron funded Fox Creek water tower mural, did fracking crack it

Earthquake rattles northwestern Alberta where fracking is common by Edmonton Journal with files from The Canadian Press, January 12, 2016
The earthquake occurred at 11:27 a.m. in northwestern Alberta, where fracking for energy development is common. Natural Resources Canada said no damage has been reported. …

Last year, the Alberta Energy Regulator imposed new standards for monitoring and reporting seismic activity in the area last year.

2015 02 25 rainbows-header-stop light system in fox creek

Source: Catalyzethis

Fox Creek is about 270 kilometres northwest of Edmonton. [Emphasis added]

Fox Creek earthquake renews calls for link between fracking and seismic activity by Edmonton Sun, January 12, 2016
… The Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) began reviewing a possible link between seismic activity and fracking operations in the area after an earthquake last January.

On Tuesday, Notley said she would like to see the review released sooner rather than later. “The AER has been engaged in a review of fracking, particularly as it relates to this issue, and I will be asking them to speed that review up a little bit more and come up some recommendations that we can consider sooner rather than later,” she said. “What I’d like to see is a report on what the evidence shows is the relationship between fracking and the seismic activity that we’ve seen up in Fox Creek.”

***

2016/01/12: 4.5 179 km NNE of Jasper,AB

2016/01/12: 2.3 177 km NNE of Jasper,AB

2016/01/09: 2.3 176 km NNE of Jasper,AB

2016/01/11: 1.9 177 km NNE of Jasper,AB

2016/01/05: 2.3 107 km WSW of Jasper,AB

***

2015 02 20: AER seismologist discusses the Fox Creek earthquakes with CBC Radio: 

Todd Shipman, a seismologist with the Alberta Energy Regulator, talks about a traffic light system being used to monitor seismic activity that may be related to hydraulic fracturing.

“We just want to manage this so it doesn’t get any bigger,”

“We’re really trying to understand this.”

AER has been monitoring since 2008 and receiving near real-time data, from the area, since 2014. Therefore, AER was aware of all activity since the original swarm in 2013 and since. They did not inform nor take action until after the 4.4 mag event became public.

[Refer also to:

2014 06 09: St. Albert residents sitting on abandoned oil and gas wells

2015 02 02: Fracking Quakes Pose Added Risks but Oil and Gas Companies Refuse to Share their Collected Seismic Data. “In low seismic environments like Fox Creek where the natural earthquakes are infrequent, the hazards from an induced seismic event can exceed the hazards from a natural source”

2015 Chevron pays for water tower mural. Too bad the town had to haul water after frac’ing started, and some of the town’s water wells went dry

2015 Chevron funded Fox Creek water tower mural, did it make the cracks

Are those frac quake damages painted on the mural?

2015 06  14: Chevron reported 3.6 magnitude event; Shut down by AER. Is the AER’s Frac Quake Stop Light System Irrelevant? Another 4.4 Magnitude Earthquake at Fox Creek

2015 Chevron funded Fox Creek water tower mural, did fracking crack it, w chevron logo

Fox Creek Water Tower, Mural paid by Chevron.

2015 07 17: AER Frac Pilot Project: Earthquakes, tax increases, water restrictions, double homicide, spills and accidents shake Alberta town’s faith in fracking; Aging sour facilities in deregulated Fox Creek a big worry for council; AER’s FracQuake Red Light stops Chevron only 16 days; Families moving out

2016 07 25: Fox Creek Mayor Jim Ahn rightfully worried about frac quakes harming sour gas infrastructure in the community. How much damage have the quakes already caused sour gas wellbores and pipelines?

2015 07 28: Alberta Energy Minister Marg McCuaig-Boyd says there’s no plan for broader review of safety of Alberta’s pipeline network. What will Fox Creek’s Mayor Ahn think of that?

2015 09 21: AER Responding to Encana Sour Gas Well Blowout in AER’s blanket approval, fracing free-for-all near Fox Creek. Was it caused by what Mayor Ahn fears? Fracquakes?

2015 09 22: AER & Encana Lying Update: Encana’s Deadly Sour Gas Blow Out at Fox Creek: Did Alberta’s Energy Minister lie for Encana & “No Duty of Care,” cover-up agent extraordinaire, the AER? ]

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