Surface · Abandonment
Site Reclamation
Cleaning up and restoring the well site after abandonment.
What it does
The company must show that site issues are resolved, for example that contaminated soil meets the provincial remediation criteria. In Alberta the AER audits sites based on risk and responds to complaints about reclamation.
Basics
| Must meet | Provincial remediation criteria for soil |
| Oversight | AER risk based audits |
| If the licensee is gone | Orphan Well Association takes over |
Common failures
- Contaminated soil left on site
Troubleshooting
- Symptom
- Soil samples above the criteria
- Likely cause
- Contamination not remediated
- What to check
- Remediate to the provincial criteria before closing the site