Documents filed by Imperial Oil show the company and Alberta’s energy regulator knew the Kearl oil sands mine was seeping tailings into groundwater years before a pool of contaminated fluid was reported on the surface, alarming area First Nations and triggering three investigations, the Canadian Press reports. “They knew there was seepage to groundwater,” said Mandy Olsgard, an environmental toxicologist who has consulted for area First Nations. However, the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) and Imperial “decided not to notify the public and just manage it internally.” The revelations add to a timeline of events that had already made headlines, after a report by management consultants at Deloitte showed big shortcomings in the regulator’s protocols:.......2015: Imperial introduced a “seepage interception system.”........2019: According to Olsgard, the AER was already aware of seepage by this year.......2020 & 2021: Reports from Imperial sent to the AER during these years confirmed tailings residues were detected at monitoring wells 70 kilometres north of Fort McMurray........2022: In May, reports of discoloured water around the Kearl lease boundary prompted an AER inspector’s visit to observe the seep areas. These seepages were classified as an “incident,” not an “emergency.” Subsequently, only one email was sent to a single point of contact for nearby First Nations communities, without any follow-up........2023: Another leak reported in February spilled roughly 5.3 million litres of industrial wastewater from a storage pond, prompting the AER to issue an environmental protection order against Imperial to address the contamination. At this time, the earlier leak detected in May, 2022 became more widely known, resulting in a backlash of criticism from affected communities. Substances found at concentrations above desired limits included naphthenic acids, dissolved solids, and sulphates—a common proxy for hydrocarbon residue. Oil sands tailings are considered toxic to fish and other wildlife. In May 2022, the seepage was reported to First Nations and communities as discoloured water pooling on the surface. They received little information after that until February 2023, when the regulator issued environmental protection orders against Imperial—and then only after 5.3 million litres of contaminated wastewater escaped from a holding pond.....read on        n/  https://www.theenergymix.com/2023/10/03/revealed-imperial-oil-alberta-regulator-knew-of-toxic-seepage-at-kearl-lake-for-years-didnt-tell-first-nation/#:~:text=Documents%20filed%20by%20Imperial%20Oil,investigations%2C%20the%20Canadian%20Press%20reports.