There seems to be some confusion in the Liberal Party and the Yukon Party between conventional and unconventional oil and gas. Conventional oil and gas is the resource that has migrated into pools in geological formations that contain it in a reservoir. Conventional gas and oil readily flows into wells. Unconventional oil and gas is is trapped in low permeability-rocks including sandstone, shale and other carbonate rocks, siltstones and coal beds. Unconventional oil and gas does not readily flow into wells, thus requires the extreme process of hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking” to extract it.
Fracking is energy intensive, expensive, and requires huge quantities of water, special sand, and chemicals. Fracking results in water and air contamination, large volumes of toxic waste, high levels of greenhouse gas emissions, and earthquakes. Fracking poses serious harms to the health of humans, wildlife and ecosystems. Unconventional (fracked) wells are relatively short-lived. Hence, fracking requires that many wells be drilled in order to maintain production, leaving a dissected and heavily impacted landscape.
According to the Yukon Geological Survey, oil and gas in the Yukon is primarily in shale bed formations. The only way to recover any oil or gas from shale is by fracking. The Yukon Party and the Yukon Liberal Party are saying that their policy is to allow only the development of conventional oil and gas. The problem is that conventional supplies of oil and gas resources in the Yukon are limited, and also that hydraulic fracturing can be used for conventional wells. If you want to develop oil and gas in the Yukon, extraction will likely involve fracking at some point.
The Yukon Party and the Liberal Party are misleading the people of the Yukon. If you don’t want the Yukon to be fracked, don’t vote for either of these parties, because behind the confusion they are creating, they plan to frack the Yukon. This is totally against our obligation and commitment to safeguard our water resources, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and de-carbonize our energy dependence.
Gordon Gilgan,
Whitehorse