Enviro study ordered for Great Sand Hills

Don Whiteley

Petroleum News contributing writer

Oil and gas exploration of Saskatchewan’s Great Sand Hills area will await a $4 million environmental study, the provincial government announced June 16. At the same time, the government quadrupled the area already declared off-limits to resource extraction, to 365 square kilometers.

The Great Sand Hills is a 1,900 square kilometer collection of naturally occurring sand dunes and prairie grass considered an ecological jewel by conservationists. Located just north of the Trans Canada Highway and on the Alberta border, the dunes are estimated to be nearly 10,000 years old.

Drilling can continue in areas where oil companies have already staked their claim, but no more mineral rights will be sold until after the study has been completed.

“We are looking at the whole landscape and that is very important,” Saskatchewan Environment Minister David Forbes told Canadian Press. “There may be stakeholders who feel we could have gone further — people who think that this wasn’t enough — but I think this is a very good start.”

Industry Minister Eric Cline said he expects the review will be also be well-received by the oil and gas industry. “What industry wants is clarity - they want to understand what the rules are,” he said.