| Methane industry urges caution on British Columbia plan By MICHAEL JAMISON of the Missoulian KALISPELL - A leader of Canada's methane gas industry called for caution this week, saying British Columbia shouldn't move too fast in its push to develop gas fields north of Glacier National Park. "The concept of fast-tracking a project like this makes no sense," Michael Gatens told Canada's National Post. "These kinds of projects in such environmentally sensitive areas are going to take a lot of time to even make the decision to develop." Gatens chairs the Canadian Society for Unconventional Gas, a trade group with a mission to "support the exploration and development" of methane and other gas resources. He also is CEO of MGV Energy Inc., a Calgary-based coalbed methane producer. And those strong industry affiliations are exactly why eyebrows lifted on both sides of the border when he announced his position in the national press. "I feel totally vindicated in the position we've been taking," said Ted Ralfe, a resident of Fernie, British Columbia, and member of Citizens Concerned About Coalbed Methane. "Our position has been that the precautionary principle should guide this exploration. And basically, that's what the industry itself is saying should happen." In fact, what industry is saying by way of Gatens is that a minimum of three to five years of environmental study will be needed before the province entertains any ideas of gas field development. During that time, he told the Missoulian, scientific study - including some test wells - should help pin down baseline data, "the kind of data that absolutely needs to be collected." That is pretty much in line with requests from concerned downstream residents in Montana, and also jibes with a study commissioned by British Columbia's government. That report, prepared by Summit Environmental Consultants Ltd. for the province's Ministry of Energy and Mines, indicated a current lack of scientific information about the areas in which the province proposes gas exploration. "This is potentially a critical information gap," the report concludes, "and baseline water quality monitoring will very likely be needed for at least three years before CBG (coalbed gas) development." But British Columbia's government has dismissed the report as "their professional opinion," saying the province's auction of methane fields will continue as scheduled, closing Aug. 25. "They just keep bulling their way forward," Ralfe said of provincial leaders, "even when everyone out there is saying 'slow down.' " Some of the first to say "slow down" were the folks in Fernie, a mountain resort town that now has a potential gas field on its city border. Municipal leaders there passed a resolution several months ago, asking the province to conduct baseline scientific studies prior to moving ahead with the auction. A similar resolution soon came from Montana, when the Flathead Basin Commission asked the province to complete environmental studies before moving ahead. Montana's congressional delegation has since made similar requests, as have the Kalispell Chamber of Commerce and the Montana governor's office. Last week, Gov. Judy Martz went over the heads of provincial leaders, asking Canada's federal government to intervene and conduct the studies before development is allowed to begin. The flurry of concern centers on the quality of wastewater produced by coalbed methane wells. The gas is found along coal seams, and often is trapped beneath groundwater aquifers. Those aquifers must be dewatered to release the gas, and the wastewater is often polluted with salts and other contaminates. Montanans are worried CBM water could pollute rivers in and around Glacier National Park. In addition, there are concerns about transboundary wildlife impacts and about wildfire threats posed by the well flares. "Until now," Ralfe said, "the B.C. government has been saying that all of us taking a precautionary position are a bunch of left-wing crazed environmental loonies. But Montana's governor agrees, and so do Montana's congressmen. Now here's the industry saying the same thing we've been saying, and I think the government will have a harder time dismissing Mr. Gatens." The provincial government did not wish to comment on Gatens' position; but Energy Minister Richard Neufeld has consistently held that local environmental protections are more than adequate, saying the CBM resource can provide jobs and tax revenue with no downstream impacts. Gatens agreed provincial regulations are strong, but he also echoed Ralfe's precautionary position, saying "today, B.C. has almost no coalbed methane wells. There are very few, and that means it's a good time to be having these discussions." It's also a good time to be collecting baseline data on watersheds, he said, as well as data on the potential gas field beneath. The province's current process, he said, allows for scientific study and gas exploration to take place concurrently. Energy Ministry officials have said exploration will not taint data collection, and the gas companies themselves can be counted on to collect the needed scientific information. The ministry, however, has declined to release all the data collected from test wells located north of Montana's Koocanusa Reservoir, a move that has increased unease south of the border. If the CBM field auction is completed Aug. 25, the winning companies will receive five-year rights to explore. They also are required to conduct exploration work during that five-year "tenure." Provincial officials have said environmental studies will be conducted during the exploration phase, but critics want the baseline data collected before exploration begins. "All anyone has asked them to do is look before they leap," Ralfe said, "and even the industry itself doesn't seem to think that's too much to ask." And Gatens, for one, agrees. "You've got to plan ahead," he said, "and the only time to plan ahead is when you're ahead." Reporter Michael Jamison can be reached at 1-800-366-7186 or at mjamison@missoulian.com |