Frack-quakes abound in BC; Fossil fuel subsidies are starving innovation

Fracking Industry Shakes Up Northern BC with 231 Tremors

Quakes also triggered by wastewater disposal, finds oil and gas commission.

 

By Andrew Nikiforuk, 10 Jan 2015, TheTyee.ca 

 

Swarms of mini-quakes now plague northeastern BC's frack fields. 

 

British Columbia's shale gas fracking industry triggered more than 231 earthquakes or ''seismic events'' in northeastern British Columbia between Aug. 2013 and Oct. 2014.

Some of the quakes were severe enough to ''experience a few seconds of shaking'' on the ground in seven areas of the province on top of the large Montney shale gas basin.

The events, many of which occurred in clusters or swarms, showed that the regulation of the industry still lags behind the pace of drilling activity in the region. 

''Induced seismicity related to wastewater disposal and hydraulic fracturing within the Montney (a 29,850 square-kilometre underground siltstone formation) indicates a more uniform application of regulations is appropriate,'' concluded a December report by the BC Oil and Gas Commission.

The 32-page report states that 38 tremors were caused by the injection of wastewater produced by fracking operations and another 193 events were directly attributed to the hydraulic fracturing of hundreds of horizontal wells in the region.....   more here

Fossil fuel subsidies are starving innovation

JOEL SOLOMON    The Globe and Mail     Jan. 07, 2015

When the Rockefeller Brothers Fund recently announced it would remove fossil fuels from its $860-million (U.S.) investment portfolio, it wasn’t just a PR stunt; it was a smart long-term financial move. Big funds like Rockefeller Brothers see what others have been trying to ignore: that fossil fuels are in decline for a host of economic, political and social reasons, as alternatives reach price parity, regulations increase and public subsidies shift.

 

Over the past few years, more than $50-billion has been committed to divest from fossil fuel investments. That may not seem like a lot for an industry that, according to the IMF, receives $2-trillion in government subsidies worldwide every year – but it’s a sign of what’s coming. Bank of England governor Mark Carney recently reiterated his warning that fossil fuel companies cannot continue on their current trajectory, if the world is to avoid catastrophic climate change, and called for investors to consider the long-term impacts of their decisions.

Mr. Carney has added his voice in support of the “carbon bubble” theory, which warns that fossil-fuel assets will be significantly devalued if a global deal to tackle climate change is reached. ....   more here      see also:$3.5 Trillion? The Insanely High Costs of Subsidizing the Fossil Fuel Industry


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