The Calgary Climate Hub is proud to have been the lead co-organizer in the C4RE, Coalition for Responsible Energy, campaign that recently filed a first-ever challenge to Alberta’s 2025 orphan fund levy, saying the proposed $144.5 million charge to oil and gas companies will cover less than a quarter of the estimated costs of cleaning up orphaned wells and other sites. This amounts to an eye-popping 83% discount on what they owe this year.

C4RE and landowner Dwight Popowich—who has an orphan well on his property drilled by bankrupt company Sequoia Resources—filed the formal Request for Reconsideration to the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) yesterday. The filing states that the low rate set for the levy
will not be able to pay for the existing backlog of orphan infrastructure. They called on the regulator to increase the levy on oil and gas companies to a minimum of $862 million to ensure Albertans are not left waiting years for orphaned wells to be cleaned up.
Egregious pattern of underfunding Alongside Mr. Popowich’s submission, C4RE also published a new report, authored by Drew
Yewchuk. It demonstrates an alarming pattern of underfunding at the industry-controlled Orphan Well Association (OWA) as a result of successive annual levies that were insufficient to cover existing cleanup costs. Orphan wells can pose both health and environmental risks, leading to land and groundwater contamination, air pollution, and persistent impacts to ecosystems.

About Coalition for Responsible Energy (C4RE):
C4RE is a coalition of landowners, scientists, surface rights advocates, and Indigenous, environmental, human health and civil society organizations fighting to change the way that energy development is regulated in Alberta.

The coalition formed around a shared concern about the AER’s failure to function as a credible regulator of energy development in Alberta, and its inability to meet its own stated mandate to “provide safe, orderly, and environmentally responsible energy development.” Responsible energy means prioritizing the health and wellbeing of ecosystems, Indigenous Peoples, and local communities over corporate interests.

For more information and a list of endorsing organizations, visit https://c4re.ca/