Sustainable Energy Law Notebook

The Norwegian oil and gas company Statoil has released today its annual report reviewing its oil sands activities in Canada in 2011, so-called "2011 Oil Sands Report Card" . According to the information package published by the company, the report presents performance indicators which measure production and energy consumption as well as emissions and quality and use of air, water and land at the Leismer Demonstration Project and in the Kai Kos Dehseh (KKD) leases in northern Alberta. Production at the Leismer facility started in January 2011. Access the full report .

The Canadian Telegraph-Journal is publishing all this week a series of articles in the form of Q&A on shale gas . The exercise is both instructive as regards shale gas and the latest developments in Canada and in New Brunswick in particular. The first article (to read HERE ) addresses the following issues: 1. What is shale gas? 2. Where are the biggest shale gas deposits in New Brunswick? 3. What is horizontal drilling? 4. What is fracking? 5. Does fracking cause earthquakes? The second article (to be read HERE ) addresses the following issues: 6. What chemicals are added to water used in fracking? 7. What are the sources of water used in fracking and where does the water go after the fracking? 8. Have water sources, such as drinking water wells, ever been contaminated by fracking?