CALGARY, AB, May 07, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) has fined Tallahassee Exploration Inc. (Tallahassee) for failure to meet its fugitive emissions and methane reporting requirements in 2021. The company has been ordered to pay $191,885.
The AER began investigating Tallahassee in 2022 and has determined that the company contravened the Methane Emission Reduction Regulation (MERR) on two counts:
- Failure to submit methane emissions reports for the 2021 reporting period.
- Failure to conduct fugitive emission surveys at any of its facilities in 2021.
The AER also found Tallahassee contravened the Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act by providing false or misleading information by resubmitting information from the 2020 reporting period and representing it as data from the 2021 reporting period.
The MERR requires adherence to methane requirements outlined in Directive 060: Upstream Petroleum Industry Flaring, Incinerating, and Venting. Under this regulation, companies must submit annual methane emissions reports for each facility. Reporting methane emissions gives the AER the necessary data to evaluate whether emission reduction strategies are working.
A fine or an administrative penalty are two possible enforcement tools the AER can use when companies break the rules.
For more information on the AER’s investigation enforcement processes, please see the Investigations webpage on aer.ca.
