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The Energy Resources Conservation Board says it's monitoring the cleanup at a pumping station on Enbridge's Athabasca pipeline near Elk Point.
Enbridge estimates about 230,000 litres leaked Monday.
Board spokesman Darin Barter says the company appears to be doing everything right with the cleanup.
He also says discussions are underway about what the company needs to accomplish to reopen the pipeline.
Enbridge had restarted the pipeline after the leak, but the board ordered it shut down Tuesday while it conducts its investigation.
Elk Point pipeline spill releases 230,000 litres of heavy crude
EDMONTON - Cleanup is underway after an oil spill Monday along Enbridge’s Athabasca pipeline, southeast of Elk Point, the Alberta Energy Resources Conservation Board says.
The company estimates about 230,000 litres of heavy crude oil spilled from a pumping station along the surface pipeline about 24 kilometres southeast of Elk Point, the board said Tuesday.
The spill was reported to the appropriate agencies on Monday, said ERCB spokesman Darin Barter.
“It does take some time to assess the site, get our field folks on-site, determine the extent of the spill, talk to the company and see what they estimate the volume at,” Barter said. “This one is significant enough that we issued a news release on it.”
The pipeline was shut down early Monday and the pumping station was fenced in. The company restarted the line Monday afternoon but shut it down again after bring ordered to by the ERCB.
“The oil has not affected either running or standing water,” Barter said.
He could not provide more detailed information on the terrain where the spill happened.
Barter said it’s too early to say what caused the spill.
In a statement, Enbridge said the cause “appears to be a failure of a flange gasket” in the pumping station. A flange gasket seals two pipe components together. The company said scare cannons have been set up as a deterrent to prevent birds from landing in the spill.
The majority of the spill was confined to Enbridge’s site, but about 30,000 litres spilled on a landowner’s field, the company said.
ERCB inspectors arrived at the site Monday, Barter said.
B.C. Premier Christy Clark keeps close eye on Alberta oil spill
B.C. Premier Christy Clark says her government is closely watching the oil pipeline leak and cleanup in central Alberta as it weighs the risks and rewards of the proposed Northern Gateway line to the West Coast.
The British Columbia premier was asked Wednesday if she's concerned about last week's leak of a pipeline just north of Sundre. In that case, up to 3,000 barrels of oil flowed into the Red Deer River system, sparking concern about its effect on wildlife, water and property in the area.
"Yes, absolutely. And we watch that pretty closely all across North America when we see it," Clark told CBC Radio.
"And for me, I am absolutely in favour of economic development, I'm in favour of resource development and I'm in favour of the export of our resources ... but I am not in favour of those things at any cost."
The Alberta government is hoping to see oilsands production ramp up in the coming years, potentially topping three million barrels per day by 2020.
To diversify bitumen export options, the Redford government backs Calgary-based Enbridge's $5.5 billion Northern Gateway pipeline project.
The proposed 1,170-kilometre line would run from the Edmonton area to a port in Kitimat, B.C., allowing Alberta crude to be loaded on to tankers bound for Asian markets.
The project is now under regulatory review, but faces op-position from First Nations and environmentalists worried about the effect of potential spills.
While the Alberta and federal governments are promoting Gateway, Clark's government has remained neutral pending a joint review by the National Energy Board and Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency.
"We have to make sure that we understand what the risks are of this particular project because crude oil is a risky commodity to move. Now, we move a lot of it all over British Columbia and all over Canada right now," the B.C. premier said.
"People are often surprised when they find the extent to which oil is moving around through pipelines already - it's not like it's not been done. But we do need to have a real grasp of the risks and when there's a problem, we have to make sure we are learning from it."
Enbridge spokeswoman Jennifer Varey offered a brief statement Wednesday about Clark's comments, saying the company appreciates the B.C. government "wants to see due process unfold in the form of the Joint Review Panel (JRP) review, and then make an informed decision."
Philippe Reicher, a vice-president with the Canadian Energy Pipeline Association, noted B.C. has more than 8,000 kilometres of transmission pipeline operating today, safely transporting oil and gas through difficult mountainous terrain.
He said the public shouldn't make the leap that a leak in Alberta is an example of what could happen in B.C.
"Can we operate pipelines in areas that are deemed environ-mentally sensitive? Absolutely," Reicher said.
"You can't really say that be-cause there's a spill happening in Region A, that it means a pipeline proposed in Region B is automatically having the same issues. It's completely unrelated, really."
If Gateway is eventually approved, Alberta would gain from increased bitumen royalties and by allowing petroleum producers to access higher world prices for oil.
Clark said Wednesday she has not had a discussion with Alberta about how increased royalties might benefit B.C., although she noted her province is "taking 100 per cent of the risks."
Alberta Energy Minister Ken Hughes brushed off questions Wednesday on the possibility of Alberta somehow transferring additional benefits to B.C., saying he wouldn't speculate about Clark's comments.
As for the pipeline spill near Sundre, Hughes said the province will ensure the cleanup is appropriate and timely.
"There are small risks of events like this happening in any industry," he added.
"We have a lot of miles of pipeline in this province. And if you look at the numbers, the performance of the pipeline sys-tem in this province ... is actually pretty good."
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