Expertise, technology and innovation to meet water needs in the oil sands industry

Surface and groundwater supplies in the oil sands region are under increasing stress due to high demand for surface mining, in situ extraction and refining processes and related industrial and municipal development. On average, one barrel of produced oil requires three barrels of produced water. This ratio is expected to increase; for example, during startup phases of steam-assisted gravity drainage operations as development of steam chambers occurs underground.

Management of water resources in the oil sands region is a technical challenge that requires a sharper focus on potential concerns, including impacts on the regional water cycle and specific ecosystems such as wetlands and lakes, identification of surface and groundwater connections that may influence contaminant migration pathways, and knowledge of natural buffering capacity of aquatic ecosystems in the boreal forest.

Tech Futures provides solutions by:

• Developing technologies to help manage and balance water supply for oil sands and mining development projects while maintaining acceptable water quality and ecosystem or watershed function.
• Assessing regional critical loads to lakes, acid sensitivity mapping, study of water quantity/water quality relationships in both pristine and developing watersheds, and mine-site hydrology and contaminants management.
• Contributing to a secure water supply for oil sands and mining operators by providing expert advice, high precision analytical technologies, modeling and support.

More information is available via the links below: 

Services
Isotope hydrology and geochemistry laboratory
People
Contact group