Alberta to explore injecting oilsands tailings underground as one management option

By Jack Farrell The Alberta government says it is considering letting oil companies inject wastewater deep underground as a way to manage the toxic tailings that are accumulating in the oilsands. The idea is one of five policy recommendations being put forward by a government-appointed committee tasked with studying potential tailings management options. A new report from the committee, which was formed over a year ago and is chaired by United Conservative MLA Tany Yao of Fort McMurray, says injecting mine water underground is a practical solution — but considering over 1.4 trillion litres of tailings exist as of 2023, it can’t be the only option. “The accumulation of (oilsands mine water) represents a management challenge, particularly in the absence of established water release standards,” the report reads. “This approach…

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