N.W.T. board considers emergency licence renewal for Imperial Oil

The Sahtu Land and Water Board in the N.W.T. says it's considering renewing a water licence for Imperial Oil on an emergency basis, after the company issued a warning of all the things that were at risk if it didn't. 

The Mackenzie Valley Review Board ruled earlier this month that it would go ahead with an environmental assessment of Imperial's entire operation in Norman Wells, N.W.T. The decision stalled Imperial Oil's applications for two separate licences that it needs to run. 

The Canada Energy Regulator has since granted Imperial an interim extension to its operations authorization but the other application — to renew a water licence from the Sahtu Land and Water Board (SWLB) that's otherwise set to expire in March — is still in limbo. 

In a letter last week to the SLWB, Imperial Oil laid out in more detail the risks and consequences of shutting down the operation in Norman Wells if the water board doesn't grant it an interim extension or an emergency renewal for its water licence. 

The company says those risks include property damage, diesel leaks into the environment, health and safety issues, as well as a significant blow to the Sahtu's economy.

More on the risks

Since it'll be cold, Imperial says it wouldn't be able to use water and nitrogen to flush its pipelines. Instead, it would need to use water and methanol to protect them from freezing until the flushing could happen during warmer temperatures, which it says would increase the risk of freezing and splitting. 

"Real time leak detection is not available while the plant and field are not producing," the company's letter reads, making it "more difficult" to avoid that kind of environmental problem. 

Shutting down the facility in the winter also makes the process longer and more complicated, and they'll need more people to carry it out, "increasing the risk of health and safety incidents." It also expects it would need another 50 truckloads of fuel and equipment to be hauled along the winter road which could "increase the risk of traffic accidents." 

The closure would also deal a blow to the Sahtu's economy, it said. 

Imperial estimates that it contributes $2.25 million to the N.W.T. economy per month, and that a closure would bring that down by 75 per cent. The company said the property tax it pays to the town is equivalent to 70 per cent of its budget, and those payments would also go down if it weren't operating. 

It would also need to use more diesel as natural gas production goes down, which might put more pressure on the supply and cost of fuel in the Sahtu region. Norman Wells has been struggling with the high cost of fuel after low water levels cancelled its yearly barge resupply. 

Board considering emergency renewal 

Another letter, from SLWB board chair Valerie Gordon four days later, said it was "considering initiating a process, in the public interest, to renew the licence for a period of three years on an emergency basis, with no changes to the licence."

The letter continued, saying the board "must be convinced" the renewal is necessary to avoid an emergency situation and that it is still required to convene a public hearing about it – though it could be cancelled if "all parties" agree.

The water board says the three-year term would give the Mackenzie Valley Review Board 16 months to do its environmental assessment, five months for a federal minister to make a decision, and about a year for the water board to process Imperial's currently frozen renewal application.