Coalbed Methane

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Coalbed methane (“CBM”) is a natural gas that forms in coal and exists in pockets throughout British Columbia. The provincial government has been aggressively promoting it as a new source of energy for nearly 20 years.

As the experience in the United States shows, CBM represents a unique and significant threat to the environment. For example, it typically requires the drilling of many shallow wells in close proximity – all connected by an industrial infrastructure of roads, power lines, pipelines and compressor stations - and the extraction process can have significant negative impacts on underground water supplies.

Unlike “conventional” natural gas development, which is concentrated in the northeast corner of BC, CBM is being considered in various pockets of the province including the Southeast (Elk Valley), the Okanagan-Similkameen (Princeton), Vancouver Island (Comox) and the northwest (Sacred Headwaters and Telkwa).

West Coast Environmental Law has been working hard on the CBM front for several years. This includes publishing two comprehensive guides – Coalbed Methane: A BC Local Government Guide (2006) and Coalbed Methane: A Citizen’s Guide (2003). We have also been traveling to communities across BC to present these guides, including at meetings with local governments.

West Coast Environmental Law and our allies believe that if CBM development continues in BC, it must do so only under the following conditions:

• The proponent has obtained a “social license” from the impacted communities to carry on its operations.
• There is sufficient science in place, including baseline testing, to understand and mitigate the environmental impacts of CBM projects.
• It is governed by a strong regulatory regime that incorporates the components of the 2007 BC Energy Plan, and that otherwise requires “best practices” for CBM development.