{"id":108420,"date":"2025-08-30T20:26:09","date_gmt":"2025-08-30T20:26:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/108420\/"},"modified":"2025-08-30T20:26:09","modified_gmt":"2025-08-30T20:26:09","slug":"southwestern-ontarians-leery-as-province-proposes-legislation-to-allow-underground-carbon-storage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/108420\/","title":{"rendered":"Southwestern Ontarians leery as province proposes legislation to allow underground carbon storage"},"content":{"rendered":"

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Destroyed buildings in the centre of Wheatley, Ont., in October, 2021, two months after a gas leak in the basement of a defunct pub caused a massive explosion.Melissa Tait\/The Globe and Mail<\/p>\n

When hydrogen sulphide \u2212 also known as sour gas \u2212 started bubbling up from underground behind the local library in Wheatley in late June and forced a brief evacuation of nearby homes, it was a stress-inducing d\u00e9j\u00e0 vu for this small Ontario<\/a> town about an hour from Windsor.<\/p>\n

Four years ago, a similar leak in the basement of a defunct pub caused a massive explosion<\/a> that destroyed two buildings and injured 20 people \u2212 and drew attention to the danger posed by the thousands of old and often improperly capped oil and gas wells that dot much of Southwestern Ontario. <\/p>\n

This summer, local officials say the latest gas leak in Wheatley bubbled up via a forgotten water well, which work crews plugged before allowing the library to reopen earlier this month. <\/p>\n

So it\u2019s not surprising that some in the region are leery when told that proposed legislation, now before the Ontario Legislature, would allow the large-scale injection of carbon dioxide deep underground. <\/p>\n

Known as carbon capture and storage, the concept is key to reducing Ontario\u2019s greenhouse gas emissions<\/a>, according to the province and industry activists. But environmental critics say carbon capture is expensive and unproven, and a distraction from the struggle to cut dependence on fossil fuels and fight climate change.<\/p>\n

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Howard Gabert, chair of the residents\u2019 Wheatley Task Force that was set up in the wake of the 2021 explosion, says the proposed legislation raises an obvious worry: Could these projects end up pushing the dangerous gas lurking beneath these leaky and sometimes century-old wells back to the surface?<\/p>\n

\u201cIf there\u2019s anything that we seem to have learned from this is that there\u2019s a lot of stuff that happens under the ground that we don\u2019t have good knowledge of, in terms of how gas moves about below the surface, and where it\u2019s going to come up and what causes it to come up,\u201d Mr. Gabert said in an interview. <\/p>\n

The Progressive Conservatives\u2019 Bill 27 would for the first time allow greenhouse gas producers to store emissions in underground geological formations. It would also set up some ground rules, including a minimum depth of 800 metres \u2212 a limit some industry advocates have said was too restrictive. <\/p>\n

The changes have been in the works for several years. Now at second reading, the bill cannot become law until some time in the fall at the earliest, when the legislature returns after an extended summer break. <\/p>\n

Proponents say carbon storage can be done safely, but some environmentalists charge that it poses risks \u2212 and rarely lives up to its emissions-reductions promises. Regardless, before any such project actually gets under way in the province, a number of financial, technical and political hurdles remain.<\/p>\n

The concept has long been pitched as a way for Alberta\u2019s oil sands producers to reduce their massive emissions, with the Pathways carbon capture and storage pipeline proposal put forward by six of the province\u2019s major oil companies. <\/p>\n

There are a handful of carbon-storage operations up and running in Western Canada, and several in other countries. But the idea remains novel, and largely under the public radar, in Ontario.<\/p>\n

The province cites studies showing that the geological conditions in Southwestern Ontario, in particular along the shores and below the bottoms of Lake Erie and Lake Huron, could potentially store carbon emissions. <\/p>\n

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The government has said this underground space could be used for the greenhouse gases produced by Ontario\u2019s concrete and steel businesses, which are considered difficult to wean off fossil fuels as they require the production of extremely high temperatures that are hard to achieve with other power sources.<\/p>\n

\t\t<\/p>\n

The Ontario government is developing a new framework for commercial-scale carbon storage. The province says capturing carbon dioxide and permanently storing it in geologic formations could provide industries with a critical tool for managing their emissions and help the province meet its emissions reduction targets<\/p>\n

Depleted<\/p>\n

oil and gas<\/p>\n

reservoir<\/p>\n

Captured CO2 emissions from industrial processes are injected into deep geologic formations through a storage well. <\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The CO2 is trapped in underground pore space, sealed by a barrier formed by impermeable cap rock layers above.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Injected CO2 can also dissolve into saline water that is present in the storage formation or react with rocks and fluids to form solid carbonate minerals underground. <\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

After injection activities end, wells are plugged, and the site is decommissioned and monitored to mitigate any potential safety risks to the public or the environment.<\/p>\n

According to the government, suitable storage formations in Ontario may be found beneath the beds of Lake Huron and Lake Erie and surrounding onshore areas where many of the province\u2019s largest emitters of CO2 happen to be.<\/p>\n

Areas suitable for carbon storage<\/p>\n

MURAT Y\u00dcKSELIR \/ THE GLOBE AND MAIL, SOURCE: GOVERNMENT OF ONTARIO<\/p>\n

\t\t<\/p>\n

The Ontario government is developing a new framework for commercial-scale carbon storage. The province says capturing carbon dioxide and permanently storing it in geologic formations could provide industries with a critical tool for managing their emissions and help the province meet its emissions reduction targets<\/p>\n

Depleted<\/p>\n

oil and gas<\/p>\n

reservoir<\/p>\n

Captured CO2 emissions from industrial processes are injected into deep geologic formations through a storage well. <\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The CO2 is trapped in underground pore space, sealed by a barrier formed by impermeable cap rock layers above.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Injected CO2 can also dissolve into saline water that is present in the storage formation or react with rocks and fluids to form solid carbonate minerals underground. <\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

After injection activities end, wells are plugged, and the site is decommissioned and monitored to mitigate any potential safety risks to the public or the environment.<\/p>\n

According to the government, suitable storage formations in Ontario may be found beneath the beds of Lake Huron and Lake Erie and surrounding onshore areas where many of the province\u2019s largest emitters of CO2 happen to be.<\/p>\n

Areas suitable for carbon storage<\/p>\n

MURAT Y\u00dcKSELIR \/ THE GLOBE AND MAIL, SOURCE: GOVERNMENT OF ONTARIO<\/p>\n

\t\t<\/p>\n

According to the government, suitable storage formations in Ontario may be found beneath the beds of Lake Huron and Lake Erie and surrounding onshore areas where many of the province\u2019s largest emitters of CO2 happen to be.<\/p>\n

The Ontario government is developing a new framework for<\/p>\n

commercial-scale carbon storage. The province says capturing carbon dioxide and permanently storing it in geologic formations could provide industries with a critical tool for managing their emissions and help the province meet its emissions reduction targets<\/p>\n

Areas suitable for carbon storage<\/p>\n

Captured CO2 emissions from industrial processes are injected into deep geologic formations through a storage well. <\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The CO2 is trapped in underground pore space, sealed by a barrier formed by impermeable cap rock layers above.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Injected CO2 can also dissolve into saline water that is present in the storage formation or react with rocks and fluids to form solid carbonate minerals underground. <\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

After injection activities end, wells are plugged, and the site is decommissioned and monitored to mitigate any potential safety risks to the public or the environment.<\/p>\n

Depleted<\/p>\n

oil and gas<\/p>\n

reservoir<\/p>\n

MURAT Y\u00dcKSELIR \/ THE GLOBE AND MAIL, SOURCE: GOVERNMENT OF ONTARIO<\/p>\n

In recent years, Enbridge and Imperial Oil, as well steel giant Stelco, had been exploring the potential for carbon-storage projects along Lake Erie.<\/p>\n

But this region is also home to thousands of old and likely improperly plugged oil and gas wells, a legacy from a once-vibrant petroleum industry that dates back more than a century. <\/p>\n

A Globe and Mail analysis in 2022 showed that 7,424 oil and gas wells across Ontario were potential \u201corphans,\u201d meaning their operators, who are normally held responsible for their capping and safety, may have gone bankrupt or no longer exist. <\/p>\n

Some municipal politicians in Haldimand County, about three hours east of Wheatley along Lake Erie\u2019s shores and pockmarked with aging wells, have already said carbon storage is unwelcome. <\/p>\n

In a submission to the province\u2019s online consultations last year, the county\u2019s chief administrative officer questioned how carbon-storage facilities would be monitored for leaks. <\/p>\n

Farmer advocacy groups have also raised concerns, including whether a leak could poison well water needed to feed livestock.<\/p>\n

Haldimand-Norfolk MPP Bobbi Ann Brady, an Independent, says she hasn\u2019t yet heard a groundswell of opposition, as few are aware of the plans. <\/p>\n

She said the government and any project proponents need to make sure the public understands precisely what they are up to and what effects it may have before anything is greenlit.<\/p>\n

\u201cWithout all the cards on the table, I don\u2019t think we should be saying, \u2018We don\u2019t want this or this is no good,\u2019 \u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The government declined to answer questions for this story or to make Ontario\u2019s Minister of Natural Resources, Mike Harris, available for an interview. <\/p>\n

Jennifer Lewis, the vice-president of local oil and gas producer Lagasco Inc., which has wells in Lake Erie and across Southwestern Ontario, says her company has scoped many deep underground areas that could be used for carbon storage. <\/p>\n

She notes that Enbridge has long used many deep underground spaces in the region to safely store excess natural gas.<\/p>\n

Ms. Lewis said her company\u2019s potential reservoirs for carbon are even deeper than the government\u2019s 800-metre ceiling: 1,000 metres or more below Lake Erie\u2019s 60-metre bottom. Most of Southwestern Ontario\u2019s aging potential problem wells are much shallower, she said, as is the water table.<\/p>\n

Carbon dioxide, compressed into a liquid state, would be pumped into storage areas that once held natural gas or into saline aquifers, deep subterranean rock formations full of brine. <\/p>\n

But these areas would still need to be clear of faults, or cracks that could allow carbon dioxide to escape, Ms. Lewis said, with thick layers of rock sufficient to keep the substance down below. Any nearby wells would need to be properly plugged.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThere\u2019s going to be an immense amount of engineering and studies needed to make sure that there are no safety concerns,\u201d Ms. Lewis said. <\/p>\n

Ontario NDP environment critic Peter Tabuns says the potential for gas leaks is a concern. He also warns that the government could use controversial new powers it gave itself this year to create \u201cspecial economic zones\u201d where it could run roughshod over environmental laws and allow carbon-storage projects.<\/p>\n

And while he says carbon capture could work in some places and for some industries, he argues that its benefits are often oversold, as projects elsewhere almost always capture much less carbon than promised. He fears it could enable some polluters to \u201cgreenwash\u201d their operations. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not a solution to the climate crisis,\u201d Mr. Tabuns said. \u201cBut man, it can make you look good.\u201d<\/p>\n

There are additional safeguards beyond the 800-metre depth requirement contemplated in the bill: Provincial permits for storage projects would require municipal approval and the evaluation of any impacts on water quality and farming, as well as consultations with First Nations for any proposal that affects their treaty rights. <\/p>\n

A fund would also be established to require proponents to cover future decommissioning costs. And any proposal within 1.6 kilometres of an existing underground gas storage area would need to be referred to the arm\u2019s-length Ontario Energy Board for review, although the minister of natural resources could make an exception. The details still need to be fleshed out in regulations.<\/p>\n

The bill would largely leave Ontario\u2019s existing legal property rights regime in place, allowing landowners to retain ownership of everything under the surface of their properties. (While there are some exemptions allowed in the province\u2019s mining legislation for mineral rights, many Ontario property holders own everything below their land, all the way to the Earth\u2019s core.) <\/p>\n

But under the proposed carbon-storage rules, cabinet could order the stripping of underground space from landowners, potentially providing compensation determined by the government, to allow for these projects.<\/p>\n

Some in the industry, as well as the Pembina Institute clean-energy think tank, had called for Ontario to adopt Alberta\u2019s legal regime, where all underground resources are owned by the Crown, as dealing with many individual landowners to secure a large carbon-storage area could be difficult.<\/p>\n

Nonetheless, Ontario has far less underground space at its disposal than provinces out west. A report by the group Clean Prosperity said the province\u2019s carbon-storage potential is just 730 megatonnes, a fraction of Saskatchewan\u2019s estimated 290,000 megatonnes or Alberta\u2019s 79,000 megatonnes. <\/p>\n

If used for all 31 megatonnes of the industrial carbon pollution the province produces every year, Ontario\u2019s space could fill up between 2060 and 2075, the report says, meaning it must be used selectively and \u201cbalanced with other emissions reduction measures.\u201d <\/p>\n

Plus, Brendan Frank, Clean Prosperity\u2019s director of policy development and analysis, says that to actually get companies to spend the large amounts of cash required to set up carbon-storage projects will require an overhaul of Ontario\u2019s, and the county\u2019s, industrial carbon-pricing regimes and incentives.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not just about making fossil fuels more expensive to burn,\u201d Mr. Frank said. \u201cIt\u2019s about making carbon profitable to capture, transport and store.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Open this photo in gallery: Destroyed buildings in the centre of Wheatley, Ont., in October, 2021, two months…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":108421,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[901,888,902,879,877,903,45,49,48,876,895,896,891,878,875,46,549,295,894,887,914,880,881,893,889,890,884,904,885,909,910,912,907,911,905,908,882,898,899,714,897,906,865,61,900,892,886,883,913],"class_list":["post-108420","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-business","tag-alberta","tag-arts-news","tag-bc","tag-breaking-news","tag-breaking-news-video","tag-british-columbia","tag-business","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-canada-news","tag-canada-sports","tag-canada-sports-news","tag-canada-trafficcanada-weather","tag-canadian-breaking-news","tag-canadian-news","tag-economy","tag-education","tag-environment","tag-federal-government","tag-foreign-news","tag-globe-and-mail","tag-globe-and-mail-breaking-news","tag-globe-and-mail-canada-news","tag-government","tag-life-news","tag-lifestyle","tag-local-news","tag-manitoba","tag-national-news","tag-new-brunswick","tag-newfoundland-and-labrador","tag-northwest-territories","tag-nova-scotia","tag-nunavut","tag-ontario","tag-pei","tag-photos","tag-political-news","tag-political-opinion","tag-politics","tag-politics-news","tag-quebec","tag-sports-news","tag-technology","tag-travel","tag-trudeau","tag-us-news","tag-world-news","tag-yukon"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/108420","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=108420"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/108420\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/108421"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=108420"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=108420"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=108420"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}