Athabasca Oil Sands Area Research Articles

Evaluation of CO2 storage capacity in Devonian hydrocarbon reservoirs for emissions from oil sands operations in the Athabasca area, Canada

Abstract Geological Storage of CO 2 has been identified by the provincial Alberta government as the major component of its strategy for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the province. The issue of reducing atmospheric CO 2 emissions is particularly important for oil sands plants, whose emissions in 2013 were in the order of 55 Mt CO 2 eq. Unfortunately, the oil sands operations are located near the shallow edge of the Alberta basin, which is not suitable for CO 2 storage. However, CO 2 storage in deep Devonian oil and gas reservoirs located westward of the oil sands operations may constitute a solution for storing CO 2 from these operations. The volumetric CO 2 storage capacity in 1225 oil and gas reservoirs in 13 different Devonian formations in an area covering approximately 126,000 km2 was estimated using information from reserves and production databases. The CO 2 storage capacity has been calculated by reservoir type and by production stage. The aggregate CO 2 storage capacity in oil and gas reservoirs in the Devonian sedimentary succession in the study area is in the order of ∼700 Mt. However, most of the reservoirs have small storage capacity, and only 9 oil reservoirs and 10 gas reservoirs have CO 2 storage capacity greater than 5 Mt each, for a cumulative total of ∼447 Mt CO 2 . The strength of underlying aquifers was evaluated by performing material balance calculations for these 19 oil and gas reservoirs and it was found that they do not have a significant effect in reducing the CO 2 storage capacity of these reservoirs. The CO 2 storage capacity in the study area is bound to be greater if one considers the fact that, once the infrastructure, including pipelines, is built to bring CO 2 to any of these very large reservoirs, then smaller reservoirs in the same oil or gas field can be accessed with relatively minimal extra costs. The aggregate CO 2 storage capacity in the fields where the 19 very large oil and gas reservoirs are found has been considered as well, raising the CO 2 storage capacity in these fields to ∼491 Mt CO 2 . The storage capacity in oil reservoirs in the study area can be further increased by using CO 2 in enhanced oil recovery. Although 705 oil pools have been identified as being technically suitable for CO 2 -EOR, only 12 oil reservoirs have remaining oil in place greater than 60 million barrels that would economically justify implementation of CO 2 -EOR. Assuming various incremental recovery factors and net CO 2 utilization factors, the additional amount of CO 2 that may be stored in these 12 oil reservoirs varies between 31 and 412 Mt CO 2 , thus increasing the CO 2 storage capacity in these oil reservoirs. This evaluation shows that the potential CO 2 storage capacity in oil and gas reservoirs in Devonian strata west of the Athabasca oil sands area in Alberta is significant and has the potential to reduce the carbon footprint of the oil sands operations for several decades until other technological advances for reducing CO 2 emissions will come into being.

Land-Use Planning and Natural Resource Rights: The Alberta Land Stewardship Act

Alberta’s new Land Stewardship Act is unique regional land-use planning legislation that affects both private and public land in the province. Significantly, the regional plans to be developed will adversely affect, amend and even rescind ‘statutory consents’ that authorise oil and gas and other natural resource development. The Act applies to major energy resource producing regions including the Eastern Slopes of the Rocky Mountains and the Athabasca oil sands area. Despite an amendment intended to clarify ambiguities concerning takings of property and rights to compensation, uncertainty and public concern remain. This article identifies and assesses these takings and compensation issues. It also looks ahead to potential regulatory issues that these regional plans may pose for resource developers, noting in particular problems concerning potential qualification or removal of water rights and environmental and natural resource development approvals. Again, it addresses issues of statutory interpretation and takings doctrine that may be of interest in other jurisdictions. In the longer run, though the Land Stewardship Act may produce some uncertainty for holders of natural resource interests overall, it may represent an improvement over earlier uncoordinated land-use policy and planning in the province.

CYP1A Induction and Blue Sac Disease in Early Life Stages of White Suckers (Catostomus commersoni) Exposed to Oil Sands

The objectives of this study were to evaluate the influence of natural oil sands on the early developmental stages of white sucker (Catostomus commersoni) and to determine whether biochemical responses in this species were similar to native fish caught in the Athabasca Oil Sands area. Early life stage (ELS) sediment toxicity tests were conducted using controls, reference sediments, natural oil sands, and industrially contaminated (wastewater pond) sediments collected from sites along the Athabasca River, Alberta (Canada). Eggs and larvae were observed for mortality, hatching, deformities, growth, and cytochrome P-4501A (CYP1A) activity using immunohistochemistry. E-Nat-, S-Nat-, and wastewater pond sediment-exposed groups showed significant premature hatching, reduced growth, and exposure-dependent increases in ELS mortality and larval malformations relative to controls. The most common larval deformities included edemas (pericardial, yolk sac, and subepidermal), hemorrhages, and spinal defects. Juveniles exposed to oil sands and wastewater pond sediments (96 h) demonstrated significantly increased 7-ethoxyresorufin–O-deethylase (EROD) activity (30- to 50-fold) as compared to controls. Reference sediment-exposed groups and water controls demonstrated reliable embryo and larval survival, minimal malformations, and negligible CYP1A staining. These observed signs of blue sac disease (ELS mortality, malformations, growth reductions, CYP1A activity induction) may produce deleterious reproductive effects in natural fish populations exposed to oil sands mixtures.This research was funded by grants from the Toxic Substances Research Initiative (Project 187) through Health Canada, Panel on Energy Research and Development, and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Council of Canada (PVH). M. Colavecchia was supported by scholarships awarded by OGS, Canadian Network of Toxicology Centres, and Petro-Canada. The authors thank the following individuals for their technical assistance with the field sampling program: R. Neurtherander (NWRI), B. Crosley, M.Conly (CWS), Golder Associates (K. Allen and M. Ezekiel), Regional Aquatics Monitoring Program, Suncor Energy (A. Cummins), Syncrude Canada (T. VanMeer, N. Rutley), M. Bowerman, and A. Winchester (Queen's University). We thank G. Fodor (DFO), Dr. P. Akhtar (Queen's University), B. Blunt, M. Baker (NWRI), S. Cagampan, and S. Backus (NLET) for their enthusiastic laboratory assistance. Portions of this research were presented at the 2003 Annual Aquatic Toxicity Workshop (Thirtieth Annual Meeting s, p. 90). Useful comments by Dr. S. Kacew and two anonymous reviewers helped improve an earlier draft of this article.

The Characterization and Distribution of Inorganic Chemicals in Tributary Waters of the Lower Athabasca River, Oilsands Region, Canada

At present, there are two large industrial plants recovering oil from the lower Athabasca oil sands area and there are plans for several more mines in the area. There are environmental concerns for aquatic life in areas downstream of current and future oil sands activities. To assess and predict potential impacts of industrial activities, it is important to separate impacts from those produced by naturally occurring oil sands deposit. Studies were therefore conducted to determine whether the water quality of tributaries to the Athabasca River, which have not been impacted by anthropogenic activities, is affected by inorganic constituents resulting from flowing through reaches with natural oilsands deposit. Three tributaries, Steepbank River, Mackay River, and Ells River at upstream and downstream locations on each stream were investigated during four surveys from 1998 to 2000. In addition to some physical parameters such as pH, conductance and hardness and the major ions (calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, bicarbonate, chloride, sulfate, and silicates), seventeen trace metals were investigated. Some of these metals, especially iron and manganese, were of high concentrations and in some instances, particularly in a survey conducted during the spring freshets in April 1999, exceeded guidelines for the protection of aquatic life. The observed concentrations of metals seem to be of natural origin and can be used as base-line data for future assessment of anthropogenic activities in the oil sand region.

In Situ Bioremediation of Naphthenic Acids Contaminated Tailing Pond Waters in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region—Demonstrated Field Studies and Plausible Options: A Review

Currently, there are three industrial plants that recover oil from the lower Athabasca oil sands area, and there are plans in the future for several additional mines. The extraction procedures produce large volumes of slurry wastes contaminated with naphthenic acids (NAs). Because of a “zero discharge” policy the oil sands companies do not release any extraction wastes from their leases. The process-affected waters and fluid tailings contaminated with NAs are contained on-site primarily in large settling ponds. These fluid wastes from the tailing ponds can be acutely and chronically toxic to aquatic organisms, and NAs have been associated with this toxicity. The huge tailings containment area must ultimately be reclaimed, and this is of major concern to the oil sands industry. Some reclamation options have been investigated by both pioneering industries (Syncrude Energy Inc. and Suncor Inc.) with mixed results. The bioremediation techniques have limited success to date in biodegrading NAs to levels below 19 mg/L. Some tailing pond waters have been stored for more than 10 years, and it appears that the remaining high molecular weight NAs are refractory to the natural biodegradation process in the ponds. Some plausible options to further degrade the NAs in the tailings pond water include: bioaugmentation with bacteria selected to degrade the more refractory classes of NAs; the use of attachment materials such as clays to concentrate both the NA and the NA-degrading bacteria in their surfaces and/or pores; synergistic association between algae and bacteria consortia to promote efficient aerobic degradation; and biostimulation with nutrients to promote the growth and activity of the microorganisms.

Physiological and Biochemical Responses of Ontario Slimy Sculpin (Cottus cognatus) to Sediment from the Athabasca Oil Sands Area

Abstract This study was conducted to evaluate whether a laboratory exposure of reference fish to oil sands sediment could produce biochemical responses (increases in 7-ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase [EROD] activity and decreases in vitro steroid production capacity) similar to fish caught in the Athabasca Oil Sands area. Sediment samples from the Steepbank River, Alberta, were collected outside of the oil sands area at a reference site (S-Ref), within the oil sands areas where oil sand compounds leach naturally into the surface water (S-Nat), and within the natural-leach deposit areas, but also adjacent to anthropogenic mining activity (S-Dev). In the laboratory, an Ontario reference population of slimy sculpin (Cottus cognatus) were exposed to sediment concentrations of 10 or 20 g/L, for 4 and 8 d. A period of 4 d was sufficient to induce EROD activity in this species by these sediments. The EROD activity measured in exposed fish was comparable to that measured in fish native to the oil sands area. This study was not capable of predicting a reduced ability of gonadal tissue of exposed fish to produce steroid hormones in vitro, as was demonstrated in the wild fish assessment of 1999 and 2000. The short-term laboratory bioassay exposing slimy sculpin to sediment from the Athabasca Oil Sands area was not a suitable surrogate for field studies, however it could be an important tool in identifying MFO-inducing compounds in Athabasca Oil Sands sediment using a Toxicity Identification Evaluation (TIE).

Seismic modeling of fluvial-estuarine deposits in the Athabasca oil sands using ray-tracing techniques, Steepbank River area, northeastern Alberta

ABSTRACT Most of the bitumen ressources in the Athabasca oil sands area are contained in fluvial and estuarine channel deposits of the Lower Cretaceous McMurray Formation. Stratigraphic sections were measured along a 5 km stretch of the Steepbank River, north of Fort McMurray, near the Suncor Steepbank Mine. We have identified at least four channel complexes based on stratal bounding surfaces, arrangement of exposed lithofacies, and consistent paleoflow patterns. The lower part of each channel complex contains medium to large-scale, trough crossbedded sandstone, exhibiting high porosity and permeability. These sandstones were deposited in channel axes and are the highest-grade bitumen deposits in the study area. Overlying inclined beds (sandy or muddy inclined heterolithic stratification) downlap on the lower sandy beds and were deposited in estuarine point bars, but the permeability and bitumen saturation of these strata are considerably lower. Nearby wells contain cored and logged intervals that are similar to exposed outcrops in the riverbank. For the outcrop sections, artificial sonic logs were constructed by comparison with sonic curves from these nearby wells, but the curves were modified to reflect differences in thickness and mud content at the exposure. Three structural-stratigraphic cross-sections and ray-tracing techniques were used to construct seismic models. These models compare favourably with four high-quality, industry-acquired seismic lines from the Clarke Creek ExxonMobil lease area, about 20 km southeast of the Steepbank River outcrops. The deposits at Steepbank are thus similar in scale and geometry to those in the Clarke Creek area. The Clarke Creek channel complexes are very well imaged on the seismic profiles, and our seismic modeling indicates that high-resolution seismic data are necessary to image these channels. 1 Present Address: Alberta Energy and Utilities Board, 640 - 5 Avenue SW, Calgary, AB T2P 3G4 End_Page 178------------------------

Abstract: Geology and reservoir modeling of Petro-Canada's MacKay River Project, Athabasca oil sands area, northeastern Alberta, Canada

Abstract: Geology and reservoir modeling of Petro-Canada's MacKay River Project, Athabasca oil sands area, northeastern Alberta, Canada

Evolution of Steam-based Technology For the Recovery of Canadian Heavy Oil Reservoirs

Abstract Heavy and extra-heavy oil reservoirs located in Western Canada (Alberta and Saskatchewan provinces) collectively represent one of the largest accumulations of hydrocarbons in the world. Over the past 20 years, a sustained field and laboratory research program aim at economic recovery of Canadian heavy oil and bitumen has taken place. This has resulted in the development and commercialization of many recovery processes using steam. Current production from active thermal projects is about 18,000 m3 per day. To cope with the large variation of geological and petrophysical conditions found in such oil reservoirs, a wide variety of successful steam-based recovery processes have evolved. These include steam stimulation above and below fracture pressure, pressure cycle steam drive, steam drive, and steam-assisted gravity drainage from both underground and surface access. The principal mechanisms believed to be taking place in' each case will be outlined. Pertinent applications of each steam process in relationship to the micro and macro description of the reservoir essential to economic recovery are discussed. Introduction Alberta and Saskatchewan have vast heavy oil and bitumen reserves. They are part of a variety of deposits ranging from Upper Devonian to Mississippian limestones and dolomites to Lower Cretaceous sand deposits of continental to marine shoreline origin. Each deposit has distinct characteristics which require unique recovery technologies. This wide variety of recovery technologies, with emphasis on the use of steam will be discussed in this paper. The heavy oil and bitumen deposits have been known for centuries, but research began in the late 1940's when large amounts of conventional oil were discovered in Alberta. Commercial production of heavy oil began in the late 1960's. In the early 1970's, when the oil price increased and Canada's conventional 011 production and reserves were already declining heavy oil production and research expanded rapidly. To stimulate this development, the Alberta Government established the Alberta Oil Sands Technology and Research Authority (AOSTRA) in 1974. Since then, AOSTRA, by collaborating with the Canadian petroleum industry, has been a major player in the development of the current technology. This paper describes briefly the geology of the main deposits and the steam-based technology which has been most effective for each geological setting. Geological Features Figure 1 shows the deposits in five major geographic locations: Athabasca Oil Sands Area, Cold Lake Oil Sands Area, Peace River Oil Sands Area, Carbonate Trend (Triangle) underlying the Athabasca and Peace River Oil Sands Areas and Heavy Oil Belt. The largest of these deposits may be the Devonian Grosmont Formation found in the Carbonate Trend. Because of low porosity high variability and poor reservoir definition this formation is most difficult to exploit. Although bitumen-bearing carbonates have been encountered throughout northeastern Alberta, only limited drilling has been done and reserves are poorly defined. The deposits occurring in unconsolidated Cretaceous sands have been well delineated. The most recent oil-in-place and initial established reserve figures are shown in Tables 1 and 2.

Oil Sand Strength Parameters At Low Effective Stress: Its Effects On Sand Production

Abstract Heavy and extra-heavy oil reservoirs located in Western Canada (Alberta and Saskatchewan provinces) collectively represent one of the largest accumulations of hydrocarbons in the world. Over the past 20 years, a sustained field and laboratory research program aim at economic recovery of Canadian heavy oil and bitumen has taken place. This has resulted in the development and commercialization of many recovery processes using steam. Current production from active thermal projects is about 18,000 m3 per day. To cope with the large variation of geological and petrophysical conditions found in such oil reservoirs, a wide variety of successful steam-based recovery processes have evolved. These include steam stimulation above and below fracture pressure, pressure cycle steam drive, steam drive, and steam-assisted gravity drainage from both underground and surface access. The principal mechanisms believed to be taking place in' each case will be outlined. Pertinent applications of each steam process in relationship to the micro and macro description of the reservoir essential to economic recovery are discussed. Introduction Alberta and Saskatchewan have vast heavy oil and bitumen reserves. They are part of a variety of deposits ranging from Upper Devonian to Mississippian limestones and dolomites to Lower Cretaceous sand deposits of continental to marine shoreline origin. Each deposit has distinct characteristics which require unique recovery technologies. This wide variety of recovery technologies, with emphasis on the use of steam will be discussed in this paper. The heavy oil and bitumen deposits have been known for centuries, but research began in the late 1940's when large amounts of conventional oil were discovered in Alberta. Commercial production of heavy oil began in the late 1960's. In the early 1970's, when the oil price increased and Canada's conventional 011 production and reserves were already declining heavy oil production and research expanded rapidly. To stimulate this development, the Alberta Government established the Alberta Oil Sands Technology and Research Authority (AOSTRA) in 1974. Since then, AOSTRA, by collaborating with the Canadian petroleum industry, has been a major player in the development of the current technology. This paper describes briefly the geology of the main deposits and the steam-based technology which has been most effective for each geological setting. Geological Features Figure 1 shows the deposits in five major geographic locations: Athabasca Oil Sands Area, Cold Lake Oil Sands Area, Peace River Oil Sands Area, Carbonate Trend (Triangle) underlying the Athabasca and Peace River Oil Sands Areas and Heavy Oil Belt. The largest of these deposits may be the Devonian Grosmont Formation found in the Carbonate Trend. Because of low porosity high variability and poor reservoir definition this formation is most difficult to exploit. Although bitumen-bearing carbonates have been encountered throughout northeastern Alberta, only limited drilling has been done and reserves are poorly defined. The deposits occurring in unconsolidated Cretaceous sands have been well delineated. The most recent oil-in-place and initial established reserve figures are shown in Tables 1 and 2.nalysis in which kinematic mechanisms beyond plasticity equilibrium could not be handled.

Environmental Constraints on Deep Disposal of Liquid Wastes in the Athabasca Oil Sands Area

Environmental Constraints on Deep Disposal of Liquid Wastes in the Athabasca Oil Sands Area

Reservoir Characterization for Chevron's HASDrive Field Trial, Athabasca Oil Sands Area, Northeastern Alberta, Canada: ABSTRACT

Chevron is currently field testing an in-situ thermal recovery process termed Heated Annulus SteamDrive (HASDrive) on the Lower Cretaceous Athabasca tar sand deposit at the Alberta Oil Sands Technology Research Authority (AOSTRA) Underground Test Facility (UTF) site. The HASDrive process applies heat through a subsurface horizontal pipe to the base of the bitumen-rich reservoir sands of the McMurray Formation. A vertical steam-injection well aids in mobilization of the heavy crude and sweeps hydrocarbons toward a horizontal subsurface producing well. To evaluate the HASDrive technology, a geologic model was developed to predict the distribution and geometry of reservoir sands and intervening shales. Core studies indicated deposition took place in an estuarine environment, with sands representing tidal channel deposits and shales relating to tidal flat sedimentation. A thorough program of conventional and special core analysis was done on samples from five wells. Special core analysis consisted of miscibly cleaning samples prior to determination of brine permeability. Vertical and horizontal permeability were determined for massive to cross-bedded sandstone as well as four types of shale-bearing sandstone. Of these four, thin shale beds and shale breccia were more effective in reducing permeability and may form barriers to fluid flow. Thin discontinuous shale laminae ormore » shaly wisps merely impede flow. Interactive workstation programs used core and log data petrophysical parameters as input to build a simulator grid of 2,600 blocks in 10 layers to represent a field trial area of approximately 2,000 m{sup 2}. Potential barriers capable of preventing or reducing the flow rate were identified, incorporated into the model, and treated as dimensionless shales (i.e., shaly beds with negligible thickness). The simulator model was then used to the match history of field trial fluid production.« less

THE CHEMICAL AND MINERALOGICAL COMPOSITION OF SOIL PARENT MATERIALS IN NORTHEAST ALBERTA

Seven major parent materials from the Athabasca oil sands area were investigated for detailed mineralogy and chemistry. The clay mineral species identified and quantified were mica, smectite, kaolinite, chlorite and vermiculite. The fine (50–250 μm) sand mineralogical suite was dominated by quartz, with lesser amounts of Na-, K-, and Ca-feldspars, and minor amounts of individual heavy mineral species. Electronoptical examination indicated that the feldspar grains in the parent materials have undergone extensive preglacial weathering. Regional mean levels of all analyzed elements (Al, Ca, Fe, K, Mg, Na, Mn, P, Cr, Co, Cu, Ni, Pb, Sr, V, and Zn), with the exception of Ca, are related to textural variability. The variability of Ca levels within the study area is related to the occurrence of calcareous parent materials. The highest levels of all major, minor, and trace elements were associated with either the Legend unit derived largely from Cretaceous bedrock or with the modern sediments of the Athabasca delta. Key words: Soil parent materials, clay mineralogy, trace element levels, sand mineralogy, feldspar morphology

Simultaneous acoustic sounder measurements at two locations

The application of air quality models requires a knowledge of the meteorological structure of the lower atmosphere. This information can be obtained by the use of acoustic sounders, or airborne sondes. Such studies were carried out at the Athabasca Oil Sands area, Alberta, Canada, during summer and winter seasons. Two acoustic sounders were operated simultaneously at two topographically different locations 4 km apart. The sounding data were supplemented by meteorological observations from minisondes and a tethersonde at one location. The majority of the sounder data from both locations showed turbulent, thin layers often associated with the presence of inversion layers, particularly in the winter season. The data exhibited a number of features common to this type of topography. Both sounder echoes were characterized by a wavy structure indicating a vertical oscillation in the height of the echoes. Although agreeing in general, the data had a few differences especially close to the ground. To determine whether the return of the sounder signal was related to the actual atmospheric structure, the sounder records were compared with local temperature measurements. The result shows good agreement between the different systems.

Quantification of Branch Dwelling Lichens for the Detection of Air Pollution Impact

AbstractIn the Athabasca Oil Sands area of Alberta, a study was carried out to test a lichen community transplant technique and to determine the influence of oil sands extraction and processing emissions on lichen cover of transplanted communities. Measurement errors of a photographic technique for the determination of lichen cover were dependent upon lichen species but were not correlated to lichen cover. When lichen covers were small therefore, relative errors were very large. Changes in cover of naturally occurring lichen communities on black spruce branches were not significant over a four-year period. Lichen communities transplanted under jack pine and white spruce trees had cover changes with time not different from naturally occurring communities even over a period of years.Significant (P<0.001) cover reductions of some lichen groups occurred on transplanted branches under white spruce within 8–3 km of a pollution source. Evernia, Cetraria, and Bryoria groups were reduced whereas Hypogymnia showed no response over a 3 year measurement period. Reductions in lichen cover were greater than the demonstrated precision of the technique.

Influences of terrain on plume level winds in the Athabasca oil sands area

Valley wind systems have been extensively studied and results reported in the literature. These studies usually involved winds near ground level in narrow, well defined valleys. This paper presents results of a unique observational study into terrain effects at 400 m above ground in an ill defined valley which is about 80km wide. Over 2300 pilot balloon observations made from 1975 to 1978 inclusive were compared to 1200m geostrophic wind data extracted from 850 mb pressure charts. Comparisons demonstrated that air flow at industrial plume levels is subject to valley channeling which is especially strong in winter months.

Natural temporal variations in the chemistry of shallow groundwater, Athabasca Oil Sands area, Alberta

Significant natural variation of the chemistry of shallow groundwater was observed from 1977 through 1979 in three wells located in the Athabasca Oil Sands area, Alberta. The wells are between 5 and 8 m deep and are located in boreal forest far from any direct influence by man.The coefficient of variation of total dissolved solids for the well sampled monthly for 35 months was 34%, while those for the two wells sampled bi-monthly were 21 and 11%. The coefficient of variation for individual constituents was generally higher than the above values.An annual pattern of variation in shallow groundwater chemistry is recognized. Calcium, magnesium, and bicarbonate reach lowest annual concentration in the spring and rise rapidly by early summer. Concentration of these ions gradually decreases through fall and winter. This cycle is related to the abundance of dissolved carbon dioxide in recharge water and is controlled to a great extent by the abundant muskeg.Spring and fall are typically times of highest sulfate concentrations. This is coincident with recharge events and is related to leaching of sulfur compounds. High chloride during winter is related to slower rates of groundwater flow and the consequent increased opportunity for release of ions from chloride-bearing minerals.Information from other wells in the Athabasca Oil Sands area indicates that the coefficient of variation of total dissolved solids with respect to time generally decreases with depth. Coefficients of variation might be expected to be as high as 35% at depths of 10 m; the range declines to a relatively constant 4% at depths greater than 150 m.

Natural colonization of an artificial stream bed in the Athabasca oil sands area of Alberta, Canada

Natural colonization of an artificial stream bed in the Athabasca oil sands area of Alberta, Canada

Deposition of atmospheric pollutants as measured by lichen element content in the Athabasca oil sands area

The aluminium, potassium, sulphur, titanium, and vanadium contents of the lichens Cladina arbuscula (Wallr.) Hale and W. Culb., Evernia mesomorpha Nyl., and Hypogymnia physodes (L.) Nyl. were determined for up to 69 sites in the Athabasca oil sands area in northern Alberta. The element accumulation by these lichens was related to both gaseous and particulate emissions from industrial sources and to a localized windblown dust component. The deposition of atmospheric emissions around an oil-extraction plant as measured by lichen thallus concentration closely followed the distribution patterns measured by physical and chemical methods. Visible changes in the thallus condition appeared to be related to the element concentrations.

The Alsands Project--A Challenge in Petroleum and Mining Geology: ABSTRACT

A third mining operation in the Athabasca oil sands area of northern Alberta is planned by the Alsands Project Group, a consortium of nine petroleum companies. The group is considering the use of large draglines to excavate oil sands from an open pit mine. This project contemplates separation of the bitumen and sand by a hot water process, followed by upgrading to synthetic crude oil. Production will begin in 1986; when design capacity of 140,000 b/d (22,250 m3/d) is reached, this project will supply over 10% of Canada's forecast crude producibility. The bitumen occurs in a 300 ft (90 m) sequence of unconsolidated sands and clays of the Lower Cretaceous McMurray Formation, at or near the surface. A thin veneer of Recent and Pleistocene aeolian and glacial deposits overlie the McMurray. Devonian carbonates and evaporites occur below the Cretaceous. McMurray deposition took place in a mesotidal, coastal environment. The lowermost sands are fluvial, upper delta plain, overlain by tidal channel and tidal flat sands and muds of the lower delta plain. Some marine barrier bars and beaches have been identified. The highest bitumen saturations occur in the fluvial and tidal channel sands. However, the lowermost sands are frequently water saturated under artesian conditions. The rugged paleotopography of the Devonian erosional surface has s gnificantly influenced the depositional pattern of the overlying McMurray. This relief is, in part, due to the solution of Middle Devonian salt beds, with subsequent collapse of the overlying units. This complex sequence of depositional patterns, varying lithologies, and fluid contents, combined with salt tectonics, has created the need for detailed geological and geotechnical studies to interface with mining engineering in developing a viable mine plan. End_of_Article - Last_Page 960------------