Notice of Hearing - Regulatory Appeal
Proceeding ID 387
TAQA North Ltd
Regulatory Appeal of Cancellation of a Reclamation Certificate
The Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) will hold a public hearing for a regulatory appeal of the cancellation of reclamation certificate 104817. The hearing will be scheduled after requests to participate are filed. If the request for the regulatory appeal is withdrawn, the hearing will be cancelled.
Description of the Proceeding
TAQA North Ltd (TAQA) was issued reclamation certificate 104817 for a well site in Legal Subdivision 7, Section 15, Township 73, Range 5, West of the 4th Meridian, about 12 kilometres from Grand Prairie (see map below). The AER issued the reclamation certificate on June 18, 2016.
On January 9, 2018, the AER Closure and Liability Branch conducted an audit of subsurface conditions at the well site.
The Closure and Liability Branch cancelled the reclamation certificate on April 4, 2019, stating that the audit results indicated that the well site did not meet the Alberta Tier 1 Soil and Groundwater Remediation Guidelines for hydrocarbons, trace elements, and salinity.
On May 2, 2019, TAQA submitted a request for a regulatory appeal, under Division 3 of the Responsible Energy Development Act and Part 3 of the Alberta Energy Regulator Rules of Practice (Rules of Practice), of the AER’s decision to cancel reclamation certificate 104817, alleging that the reasons for the cancellation are invalid.
The AER granted TAQA’s request for regulatory appeal on August 26, 2019.
The purpose of the hearing is to determine whether the AER should confirm, vary, suspend, or revoke its decision to cancel the reclamation certificate.
Where can I find information about the hearing?
To view or receive a copy of the hearing materials, or for information on AER procedures, contact
Tara Wheaton, Hearing Coordinator
Alberta Energy Regulator
Suite 1000, 250 – 5 Street SW
Calgary, Alberta T2P 0R4
Email: Hearing.Services@aer.ca
Phone: 403-297-8288
Who are the current parties to this appeal?
TAQA and the AER’s Closure and Liability Branch are parties to this regulatory appeal. As parties, they may participate in the hearing and do not need to submit a request to participate. However, they must confirm their intention to participate in the hearing and the nature and scope of their participation to the hearing coordinator by 4:00 pm on November 8, 2019.
How can I apply to participate in the hearing?
If you are not already a party to the regulatory appeal and want to participate in the hearing, you must submit a written request to participate. Requests to participate are placed on the public record of this proceeding.
Your request to participate must contain
- a copy of your statement of concern, if applicable;
- a concise statement indicating
- why you may be directly and adversely affected by a decision of the AER on the regulatory appeal , or
- if you will not be directly and adversely affected by a decision of the AER on the regulatory appeal, explain
- what the nature of your interest in the matter is and why you should be permitted to participate,
- how your participation will materially assist the AER in deciding the subject matter of the regulatory appeal,
- how you have a tangible interest in the subject matter of the regulatory appeal,
- how your participation will not unnecessarily delay the regulatory appeal, and
- how you will not repeat or duplicate the evidence presented by the other parties in the regulatory appeal;
- the outcome of the regulatory appeal that you advocate;
- the nature and scope of your intended participation;
- your contact information;
- if you have a representative, their contact information;
- if you are acting on behalf of a group or association of persons, the nature of your membership in the group or association; and
- your efforts, if any, to resolve issues associated with the proceeding directly with the party requesting the appeal or the approval holder, as the case may be.
Send the request to the hearing coordinator. Submissions should be PDF documents with bookmarks, page numbers, and optical character recognition.
Filing deadlines
November 8, 2019 - Final date to file a request to participate.
November 15, 2019 - Final date to submit responses to any request to participate.
Is this a public process?
Yes. Section 49 of the Rules of Practice requires that all documents and information filed for a proceeding be placed on the public record. You must not include any personal information that you do not want to appear on or are not authorized to put on the public record. You should assume that anything you submit will be available online to the public. Section 49(2) of the Rules of Practice states how to apply to the AER for an order to keep information confidential.
What is outside of the AER’s jurisdiction?
Compensation for land use is not dealt with by the AER and should be referred to the Alberta Surface Rights Board.
If my request to participate is approved, can I apply to get reimbursed for hearing-related costs?
If you are participating in a hearing, you may be eligible to have some of your costs paid. Directive 031: REDA Energy Cost Claims explains how and when to apply.
Issued at Calgary, Alberta, on October 25, 2019.
ALBERTA ENERGY REGULATOR
