Oil spill near Red Deer river in Alberta

by · 2012-06-19

A pipeline breach near Sundre, Alberta has spilled nearly 3,000 barrels of light sour crude oil into the Red Deer river. Plains Midstream Canada, the company who owns the pipeline, is still working on the clean-up of a 28,000 barrel oil spill near Peace River, AB in April 2011. Officials say that the recent spill has been contained and crews are still working around the clock to decrease the impact of the incident. The fact that the pipeline was not in use at the time and heavy rainfall helped to minimize the damage and to aid in cleanup. According to Alberta Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, the cleanup efforts are going well. A team of people comprised of wildlife biologists and technicians are looking for wildlife in the area that may have been affected by the spill. So far the number appears to be quite small. Two beavers and two birds have been found and brought to the local Medicine River Wildlife Centre for care until they can be released. Four dead fish were also found, but it is not known at this time whether the spill was a factor. Plains Midstream Canada has also placed deterrents to keep wildlife out of contaminated areas.