OTTAWA, July 14, 2006 - The Honourable Rona Ambrose, Minister of the Environment and Minister responsible for the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency, and Neil McCrank, Chairman of the Alberta Energy and Utilities Board (EUB), today announced the establishment of a joint panel to review the Kearl Oil Sands and Muskeg River Mine Expansion Projects north of Fort McMurray, Alberta.
Minister Ambrose appointed Mr. Les Cooke as the federal member of the panel. The panel chair and the other member will be EUB Board members. Biographical information on the federal panel member is available in a Backgrounder.
Minister Rona Ambrose and Neil McCrank have signed joint panel agreements for each review (Kearl Oil Sands Project Mine Development, Muskeg River Mine Expansion). The agreements were released for public comment before being finalized. Each agreement describes the terms and conditions as well as the process to be followed for conducting the joint panel.
Under the agreements, the joint panel will:
conduct an examination of the environmental effects of the proposals and the significance of those effects,
consider measures that are technically and economically feasible to mitigate any adverse environmental effects and the need for, and the requirements of, any follow-up programs with respect to the projects,
consider comments from the public that are received during the review, and
determine whether the project is in the public interest by examining the social, economic, and environmental impacts of the projects.
Further details on the scope of the environmental assessment can be found in the panel’s Terms of Reference for each project (Kearl Oil Sands Project Mine Development, Muskeg River Mine Expansion).
Imperial Oil Resources Ventures Limited and ExxonMobil Canada Properties are proposing to construct and operate an oil sands mining and extraction facility. The proposed Kearl Oil Sands Project Mine Development is to be located approximately 70 kilometers north of Fort McMurray. The project is designed to produce approximately 48,000 cubic metres per day of partially deasphalted bitumen (clean bitumen).
The Albian Sands Energy Inc. (Albian Sands), a joint venture company owned by Shell Canada Limited, Chevron Canada Limited and Western Oils Sands L.P., is seeking amendments and approval to existing approvals to expand the existing Muskeg River Mine. The expansion will allow Albian Sands to increase bitumen production capacity to an average nominal 270,000 barrels per calendar day (approximately 43,000 cubic metres). The expansion is located approximately 70 kilometres north of Fort McMurray.
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The Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency administers the federal environmental assessment process, which identifies the environmental effects of proposed projects and measures to address those effects, in support of sustainable development.
The Alberta Energy and Utilities Board ensures that the discovery, development, and delivery of Alberta’s resources take place in a manner that is fair, responsible, and in the public interest.
For more information, media can contact:
Gordon Harris
Sr. Communications Advisor
Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency
Tel.: 613-957-0825
gordon.harris@ceaa-acee.gc.ca
