By: Nigel Bankes
PDF Version: Mutatis Mutandis: The ERCB Speaks (in Latin) on the Subject of Carbon Capture and Storage
Matter Commented On: ERCB Bulletin 2010 – 22, ERCB Processes Related to Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) Projects, June 29, 2010
After a long period of cogitation the chief energy regulator in the province has finally provided a statement of how it proposes to approach the regulation of carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects. The message is simple: apply the current rules, so far as they are applicable to CCS (the basic idea of mutatis mutandis). The issue is important: several task forces and many commentators have emphasised that the proponents of CCS projects need regulatory certainty if they are to plan and implement commercial scale CCS operations. Whether this ERCB Bulletin provides sufficient guidance to industry and sufficient comfort to the citizens of the province that CCS projects will be handled safely remains to be seen.