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Dave White's avatar

I would like to tell the government here, "What's good for the goose is good for the gander". If they are going to be responsible about green energy being responsible for any clean ups, they'll hold the oil industry to their responsibilities. I know this won't happen because even if there are billions worth of green energy investments, the oil industry is calling the shots and they are only worried about their profits.

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Deirdre Mitchell-MacLean's avatar

It’s so frustrating. Entirely

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Dave White's avatar

Pssst, pumpjacks only pump, not drill.

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Deirdre Mitchell-MacLean's avatar

Not my area obviously 😏

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Garth Jolly's avatar

I’ll add that you can’t pump gas due to its compressibility. You can only pump liquid.

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Deirdre Mitchell-MacLean's avatar

Helpful! I’ve also since realized that my mom told me about the sour gas and.. let’s just say I’ve learned she was not a reliable source.

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Deirdre Mitchell-MacLean's avatar

Argh. I remember the pump jack but I also remember being told about the sour gas and in case of a leak we had to evacuate out the north entrance. Can you have both in a close area? There was also a flame out of a stack.

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Dave White's avatar

Yes. Gas is a byproduct of the oil and has to be processed. Before, it was burned off in a flame stack which is illegal now. Where I worked we did the oil process, gas was another service, so I am making assumptions based on the gas processing we needed to accommodate.

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Garth Jolly's avatar

Technically speaking... Down the well there are two concentric pipes. The pumpjack pumps the oil up the inner pipe, while gas flows up the annulus between the two concentric pipes (easily because it is low density and aided by reservoir pressure. Unlike the oil, which requires a pump to travel that height). Flare stacks are not “illegal” but are heavily regulated and should either be temporary for a new well, centrally located for multiple low volume wells, or eventually connected to a gas gathering system if there is sufficient volume.

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Garth Jolly's avatar

Adding the technical explanation, not to be a jerk but to provide an accurate basis for the discussion. Too often a great point is easily derailed by opponents if data and technical aspects are misunderstood or misinterpreted.

Happy to help with the engineering aspects if you ever need clarity. Feel free to reach out.

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