Water management

Water availability and quality are of increasing concern to many Canadians. Access to clean water is essential to the health of people and is critical to Imperial’s operations. We require water at every stage of our business, from exploration and production to refining.

Our approach

We focus on freshwater conservation opportunities, efficient use of water through the design and operation of our facilities, and recycling and reuse. Company-wide, we are exploring opportunities to further reduce freshwater use and preserve water quality by:

• recycling water and minimizing freshwater use in existing operations
• managing freshwater use for new projects
• reassessing freshwater licence allocations that can be returned to the Crown for redistribution
• collaborating with industry to reduce impacts on local water resources

Each of our businesses implements strategies to meet specific water needs and challenges. In our Upstream business, we are increasingly meeting water needs through the recycling of produced water (water produced along with oil production) and the use of brackish water (water from saline aquifers that is not fit for human consumption or agricultural use). In the Downstream, our efforts are focused on preventing spills from facilities and ensuring that water returned to the environment meets high standards.

Performance at a glance

What we are doing

Increasing water recycling

We have a long history of continuous improvement in freshwater conservation. This has resulted largely from our focus on water recycling.

At the Cold Lake operation, water is used to generate steam that is injected into underground bitumen deposits to heat the oil so it can be pumped to the surface. Since the technology requires large amounts of steam, specialized techniques have been developed for recycling water. Due to continuous improvement initiatives, our Cold Lake operation now uses half a barrel of fresh water for each recovered barrel of bitumen. This is 88 percent less fresh water per unit of production than what was required in the mid-1970s.

Virtually all of the water used to generate steam is recycled produced water (approximately 95 percent of produced water is treated and recycled). However, some water remains in the reservoir, so additional makeup water is required. Our first choice is to use brackish water. However, as additional fresh water is still required for some older facilities, water is taken from Cold Lake or from groundwater at times when lake levels are too low.

We are continuing to look for opportunities to reduce freshwater consumption. In 2010, the operation’s five-year-term water licence requires renewal. As part of our licence renewal, we have identified changes to plant procedures and equipment to reduce fresh water or increase the use of recycled water.  Conservation initiatives are now underway and if successful, will reduce freshwater use at the operation by up to 30 percent over the next five years.

For our Nabiye expansion project, after a start-up period that will require fresh water because there will be little water to recycle at first, Nabiye will use recycled produced water or brackish water for high-pressure steam production, minimizing the need for fresh water.

In the Downstream, a project is underway to reduce, reuse and recycle water at our sites. The goal is to find improvement opportunities in current practices as well as establish best practices. For example, at our Dartmouth refinery, we have begun a condensate recovery project that will see the refinery recycle condensate that comes from steam in order to reduce our freshwater consumption. The project is expected to be completed in 2010.

RiverWatch students conducting environmental monitoring below the Strathcona Refinery.

Up close:

Reassessing water licence allocations

We work closely with government agencies to explore ways to manage water demand and promote the efficient use of water resources. An important area of focus involves reassessing water licences that can be returned to the Crown. In our conventional oil and gas business, where there is declining oil production, we are reviewing our water licences and voluntarily returning unused water allocation in Alberta. In 2009, we voluntarily returned five licences, restoring about 7.5 million cubic metres per year of unneeded water allocation to the provincial government. This is about twice the volume of fresh water used for all of our Cold Lake operations.

Managing water use for new projects

At our Kearl project, we are applying creative ways to reduce the oil sands project's impact on water resources. Using a water storage system, we will reduce water withdrawal from the Athabasca River during low-flow periods. Kearl will also use advanced tailings technologies to recycle process water and reduce water demand.

Comprehensive water management plans are in place to meet government regulations for water use and releases. Currently, Kearl is under construction and requires little water except to compact soil and control dust and for exploration drilling on the lease. We have built a system of drainage ditches and a settling pond to collect surface water and, wherever possible, are releasing excess surface water to vegetation or muskeg to minimize the sediment that reaches fish-bearing water.

Collaboration with industry to reduce impacts

We work closely with industry to share ideas and develop action plans that can reduce the regional impacts of industry on water resources. Currently, we are actively collaborating with industry groups in the Athabasca area and the Horn River Basin.

Athabasca region:  Like other similar developments in the Fort McMurray area, the Kearl project will draw water from the Athabasca River. Currently, less than three percent of the river’s natural flow is allocated to the oil and gas sector.  To manage low winter flows when withdrawals could represent a larger percentage of the river flow, regulations limit water withdrawals, and the oil sands mining industry will rely on water storage to make up the difference. To help ensure that requirements on the river are efficiently managed, we have been a key driver in a co-operative program involving the major oil sands companies operating, or planning to operate, in the Athabasca region. These companies have committed themselves to a plan aimed at preserving acceptable flow rates in the river as set out in a water management framework established by the provincial and federal governments.

We are also an active member of the Oil Sands Developers Group (OSDG), a non-profit association of companies involved in oil sands projects in the area. In 2009, the OSDG commissioned a study that evaluated better ways to incorporate water storage in oil sands projects and manage water withdrawals from the river.

Horn River:  Water use is required for the development of shale gas, where water is used to fracture the shale and create flow channels for the gas to be produced. We are partnering with industry to collectively manage water use and to minimize impacts on local water resources during shale gas exploration in the Horn River Basin. In 2009, we participated in a collaborative study led by the Horn River Basin Producers Group and Geoscience BC to identify and map brackish water aquifers in the basin. The goal of the project is to identify alternatives to fresh water.  By reducing our reliance on freshwater resources (both surface water and fresh groundwater), we decrease the surface footprint of development in the basin and minimize the potential impact on potable water, thereby promoting responsible development.