France protests: Demonstrator in critical condition and 16 officers injured as French police clash with people opposed to reservoir plans

Sky News
Sat, 25 March 2023


A protester is in a critical condition and an injured officer has been flown from the scene by helicopter as police clash with thousands of people opposed to plans for a large water reservoir in France.

Several people have been injured in the clashes, which have taken place in the western rural district of Sainte-Soline.

Two protesters were seriously hurt, including one who is in a critical condition after suffering a head injury, as well as

16 police officers, the local prefecture said.

One officer was evacuated by helicopter.

Police fired tear gas to repel some protesters who threw fireworks and other projectiles as they crossed fields to approach the construction area in the district.

At least three police cars caught fire, television footage showed.

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The demonstrators, who have come together despite a ban on gatherings, are opposed to a large water reservoir for farm irrigation.

Around 3,200 police were deployed for the demonstration, said Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said, who blamed far-left groups for the violence.

The heavy police presence included helicopters and officers riding quad bikes.

Emmanuelle Dubee, the prefect of the surrounding region, said around 1,000 radical protesters were expected among an estimated 6,000 demonstrators.

France's worst drought on record last summer - which was also felt across the UK and Europe - sharpened the debate over water resources in agriculture.

Supporters say artificial reservoirs are a way to use water efficiently when needed, while critics argue they are outsized and favour large farms.

Similar protests erupted last October and resulted in injuries.

The unrest over the irrigation project comes after weeks of demonstrations in France against a pension reform that sees the retirement age rise from 62 to 64.

The protests have turned violent since the government pushed through the legislation without a final parliamentary vote, with piles of rubbish set alight on the streets of Paris, riot police firing tear gas and more than 300 arrests.

The King's state visit to France, which was due to begin on Sunday, has been postponed amid the ongoing violence and unrest.

Violent clashes erupt over agro industry water megabasins project in western France

Issued on: 25/03/2023 

A protester throws a mortar at riot mobile gendarmes during a demonstration called by the collective "Bassines non merci", the environmental movement "Les Soulevements de la Terre" and the French trade union 'Confederation paysanne' to protest against the construction of a new water reserve for agricultural irrigation, in Sainte-Soline, central-western France, on March 25, 2023. - More than 3,000 police officers and gendarmes have been mobilised and 1,500 "activists" are expected to take part in the demonstration, around Sainte-Soline. The new protest against the "bassines", a symbol of tensions over access to water, is taking place under thight surveillance on March 25, 2023 in the Deux-Sevres department.

 © Thibaud Moritz, AFP

French security forces again clashed with protesters Saturday as campaigners sought to stop the construction of reservoirs for the agricultural industry in the southwest of the country, AFP correspondents said.

The violent scenes in Saite-Soline in western France came after days of violent protests nationwide over President Emmanuel Macron's pension reform that prompted the cancellation of a visit by King Charles III of the UK.

A long procession set off late morning, comprising at least 6,000 people according to local authorities and around 25,000 according to the organisers.

More than 3,000 members of the security forces were deployed, with "at least 1,000" potentially violent activists, including some from Italy, present, officials said.

Around the construction site, defended by the police, violent clashes quickly broke out between the security forces and radical militants, AFP correspondents said.

Multiple projectiles and improvised explosives were thrown by protesters, with police responding with tear gas and water cannon.

"While the country is rising up to defend pensions, we will simultaneously stand up to defend water," said the organisers gathering under the banner of "Bassines non merci" ("No to reservoirs, thank you").

Eleven people were already detained after police seized cold weapons, including petanque balls and meat knives, as well as explosives.

The protest movement against the pension reform have turned into the biggest domestic crisis of Macron's second mandate, with daily clashes in the streets of Paris and other cities between police and protesters.

(AFP)

New violent clashes rock France in water protest

Issued on: 25/03/2023 -

The violent scenes in Saite-Soline in western France came after days of violent protests over President Emmanuel Macron's pension reform 

© Thibaud MORITZ / AFP


Sainte-Soline (France) (AFP) – French police again clashed with protesters Saturday as campaigners sought to stop the construction of reservoirs in the southwest, the latest in a series of violent standoffs as social tensions erupt nationwide.

The violent scenes in Sainte-Soline in western France came after days of violent protests nationwide over President Emmanuel Macron's pension reform that prompted the cancellation of a visit by King Charles III of the UK.

The protest movement against the pension reform have turned into the biggest domestic crisis of Macron's second mandate, with daily clashes in the streets of Paris and other cities between police and protesters.

Several protesters and members of security forces were wounded in the clashes around Saite-Soline as campaigners sought to stop the construction of reservoirs for the agricultural industry, according to the authorities.

A long procession set off late morning, comprising at least 6,000 people according to local authorities and around 25,000 according to the organisers.

More than 3,000 members of the security forces were deployed, with "at least 1,000" potentially violent activists, including some from Italy, present, officials said.

Around the construction site, defended by the police, violent clashes quickly broke out between the security forces and radical militants, AFP correspondents said.

'Simultaneously stand up'

Multiple projectiles and improvised explosives were thrown by protesters, with police responding with tear gas and water cannon.

Two protesters were seriously wounded, including one who was hospitalised with a brain injury, the authorities said.

Sixteen members of the security forces were wounded, six of whom were hospitalised regionally and one of whose injuries were so serious he was evacuated by helicopter.

"While the country is rising up to defend pensions, we will simultaneously stand up to defend water," said the organisers gathering under the banner of "Bassines non merci" ("No to reservoirs, thank you").

Eleven people were detained after police seized cold weapons, including petanque balls and meat knives, as well as explosives.

While not directly related to the anti-pensions reform campaign, the clashes over the water reservoir construction have added to tensions in an increasingly challenging situation for the government.

Potentially violent activists, including some from Italy, were present, authorities said 

SHOWED UP ARMED WITH RACQUETS FOR THE ANARCHIST GAMES TEARGAS TENNIS

The cancellation of Charles' state visit -- which was to be his very first abroad as monarch -- was a major embarrassment for Macron and acknowledgement of the seriousness of the situation.

After the worst clashes yet of the three-month movement on Thursday night, protest activity has been less intense in the last 24 hours.

But the government is bracing for another torrid day on Tuesday when unions are due to hold another day of strikes and protests.

This would have been the second full day of Charles' visit, which now must find a new date in his packed calendar. Instead, Germany will be his first foreign destination as monarch.

The scenes in France have sparked astonishment abroad. "Chaos reigns in France," said the Times of London above a picture of rubbish piling up. "Macron surrenders to the mob," said the mass-circulation Daily Mail over the cancellation of the king's visit.

'I will not give up'

Uproar over legislation to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64 was enflamed when Macron exercised a controversial executive power to push the plan through parliament without a vote last week.

The streets of the capital have also been strewn with rubbish because of a strike by waste collectors.

Despite the protests, President Emmanuel Macron has remained defiant 

© Emmanuel DUNAND / AFP

But there has also been controversy over the tactics used by the French security forces to disperse the protests.

The Council of Europe -- the continent's leading human rights watchdog -- warned that sporadic acts of violence "cannot justify excessive use of force by agents of the state" or "deprive peaceful protesters of their right to freedom of assembly".

Macron has defiantly refused to offer concessions, saying in a televised interview Wednesday that the changes needed to "come into force by the end of the year".

The Le Monde daily said Macron's "inflexibility" was now worrying even "his own troops" among the ruling party.

"I will not give up seeking to convince," Borne told a conference on Saturday.

"I will not give up on building compromises. I will not give up on acting. I am here to find agreements and carry out the transformations necessary for our country and for the French."

© 2023 AFP

'Some officers think everything is allowed': CNRS researcher deplores French police brutality

Issued on: 25/03/2023 - 

02:54 Interview with Chistian Mouhanna 

© FRANCE 24

Text by:FRANCE 24

Video by:FRANCE 24

Tensions are rising in France after President Emmanuel Macron in his first public interview refused to compromise on the government’s controversial pension reform bill. As peaceful demonstrations turn to social unrest, police forces are picking up their batons and using them on protesters.

Hundreds of people have been arrested since Thursday, which saw one of the largest demonstrations so far this year, since protests broke out against Macron's pension reform bill.

Many were wounded due to clashes with police forces, who also count numerous injuries among its officers.

“The problem is, the police forces are used in France when there is no room for negotiation, so they are pushed by the government to be aggressive...that’s why some of the officers think that everything is allowed and they can beat or aggress some people”, CNRS-CESDIP research director Christian Mouhanna told FRANCE 24.

Click on the video player to watch the full interview.

Federal decision to shut down B.C. salmon farms prompts company court challenge

An Atlantic salmon is seen at a fish farm near Campbell River, B.C. Wednesday, Oct. 31, 2018. A British Columbia salmon farming company is seeking to challenge in court the federal government's decision not to renew the licences for its open-net Atlantic salmon farms off Vancouver Island. (THE CANADIAN PRESS /Jonathan Hayward)

A British Columbia salmon farming company is going to court to challenge the federal government's decision not to renew the licences for its open-net farms off Vancouver Island.

Documents filed in Federal Court in Vancouver by Mowi Canada West apply for a judicial review of the decision last month by Fisheries Minister Joyce Murray to shut down 15 salmon farms.

Mowi's application seeks an order quashing or setting aside Murray's decision to shut down the company's 11 open-net salmon farms located off the Discovery Islands, near Campbell River.

It asks the court to have the matter referred back to Murray and a declaration the minister's February decision was "unreasonable, invalid and unlawful."

The federal government has not responded to the application, but as she announced the decision last month Murray said recent science indicates uncertainty over the risks fish farms pose to wild salmon and government was committed to transition away from the open-net farms. 

The farms off B.C.'s coast have been a major flashpoint with environmental groups and some Indigenous nations saying the farms are linked to disease that transfers to wild salmon, while the industry, local politicians and other First Nations say they are safe and the closures threaten thousands of jobs.

"Prior to the decision to eliminate aquaculture in the Discovery Islands region, Mowi had 645 employees in B.C., a significant number of whom were Indigenous," says the court application. "Since the minister's decision to prohibit aquaculture in the Discovery Islands, Mowi's workforce has been reduced to 312 employees.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 21, 2023.

FOOD NOT FUEL

Shortage of cooking oil looms as biofuels gain global appeal

Anuradha Raghu, Bloomberg News

Various sample fuels used in road test of 40% palm-based biodiesel in Central Java, Indonesia. 

Photographer: Dimas Ardian/Bloomberg

A global biofuel boom is set to drive a shortage of vegetable oils — used for cooking and now increasingly to power trucks and planes — intensifying a debate over food versus fuel. 

From the U.S. to Brazil and Indonesia, governments are embracing energy made from plants like soybeans or canola, or even animal fat, to move away from fossil fuels and cut emissions. This has created opportunities for vegetable oils, especially palm oil, an ubiquitous but controversial ingredient found in products like pizza dough, instant noodles, chocolate and shampoo.

Demand is so hot that producers are hunting for used cooking oil and sludge, a waste product from processing palm oil, as feedstocks for biofuels. 

These lofty ambitions may face challenges. War and extreme weather are limiting vegetable oil supplies. A severe drought has devastated production in Argentina, the top exporter of soybean oil. In Europe, restrictions on using bee-toxic pesticides will curb planting of rapeseed that relies on the pollinators, while Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine will slash sunflower oil exports.

With growth in vegetable oil production expected to slow, biofuels could push the global market into a deficit in the second half of the year, according to Thomas Mielke, executive director of Hamburg-based Oil World.

Biofuels account for a large share of the vegetable oil market but only a fraction of energy demand, Mielke said. He’s concerned that combined biofuel targets are overdoing what the global market for oils and fats can satisfy.

The U.S., Europe, Brazil and Indonesia are responsible for most of the biodiesel, renewable diesel and biojet fuel consumption growth. The U.S. uses a mixture of feedstocks such as soybean oil, rapeseed oil, used cooking oil and animal fats. Europe is producing from wastes, residues and rapeseed oil. Indonesia mainly uses palm oil to produce biodiesel, while Brazil relies on soybean oil.

This trend is widely expected to benefit palm oil, a product that’s come under scrutiny in recent years amid reports of deforestation and forced labor. With rival oilseeds and vegetable oils being used increasingly in biofuels, some of the demand will spill over to palm, according to James Fry, chairman of Oxford-based agriculture consulting firm LMC International Ltd.

But the palm oil market may not be able to keep pace. Production in Indonesia and Malaysia, which together account for 85 per cent of world supply, are plateauing due to the slow replanting of old and unproductive trees, erratic weather, and as deforestation curbs limit landbank expansion.

Threats to supply, particularly from climate change, will push up agricultural prices and slow the world’s efforts at converting food into fuel, said Dorab Mistry, an influential trader who’s worked in the industry for four decades.

The International Energy Agency has warned that swelling demand for biofuels and a looming feedstock crunch, if not addressed, will undermine the potential for biofuels to contribute to global decarbonization efforts. 

Biofuel mandates should be flexible and provide room for temporary adjustments in the event of supply shocks, according to Oil World’s Mielke. Given the importance of those policies to the entire oils and fats complex, any changes must be moderate as they can have a devastating impact, he said.

Last year, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine disrupted global sunflower oil trade and boosted demand for palm and soybean oil, sending prices to record highs. Even then, most countries did not ease their biofuel policies, leading to demand destruction in some vegetable oil consumers, mainly from developing nations.

“In periods of supply shortages, the necessary rationing of demand must not take place only on the shoulders of the food consumers,” Mielke said. “This is a lesson we have to learn from last year.”

St. Lawrence Seaway shippers eye EV materials, but grain and ore remain the staples

Christopher Reynolds, The Canadian Press 

Mar 22, 2023

Shippers who ply the St. Lawrence Seaway view critical minerals for electric vehicle batteries as key to their future — but it could be a while before the floodgates open on Canada's largely untapped reserves.

Until then, grain and iron ore remain the staples, comprising nearly half of the 36.3 million tonnes of cargo that traversed the seaway last year.

Terence Bowles, who heads the management authority overseeing the system of locks, canals and channels that stretches for more than 300 kilometres between Montreal and Lake Erie, said he expects a million more tonnes of Canadian grain will float down the St. Lawrence River from Thunder Bay and other Ontario ports in 2023.

"It's in the silos ready to come ... so we're expecting quite a bump-up," he said in an interview Wednesday after the opening ceremony for the seaway's navigation year.

The war in Ukraine will likely extend the spike in demand for grain as well as potash, said Chamber of Marine Commerce CEO Bruce Burrows. Ukraine and Russia are major exporters of wheat, corn, sunflower oil and fertilizer products, but Ukrainian shipments were hampered by a months-long Russian blockade last year, since lifted for the time being.

Iron ore traffic will also pick up as car makers "get back on their feet" and construction activity remains sturdy, Burrows predicted, pointing to the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) in particular.

"The GTA is still the biggest, fastest growing part of the North American economy. It's a great sucking sound of special projects, all of which have to be sourced with resource materials that we move by ship," he said.

Behind him, the Algoma Central shipping company's Captain Henry Jackman freighter issued a horn blast before disembarking along the St. Lawrence River, hauling iron ore en route to Hamilton's ArcelorMittal Dofasco mill to be transformed into steel.

Jet fuel shipments bound for Toronto's Pearson airport will also ramp up in 2023 as the airline industry takes off after more than two years of aviation downturn due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, Burrows said.

Coal cargo may decline further after a 16 per cent drop in volume last year, he added. "None of us are banking on coal as part of our future."

In the long term, shippers and ports hope to see critical minerals make up a growing chunk of bulk freight to feed the fast-growing market for electric cars.

"There's an abundance of critical materials needed for battery and electric vehicle production in Canada, and many of these will be transferred from mine sites and facilities by the marine mode," Bowles told industry representatives in a speech at the St. Lambert Lock across the St. Lawrence River from Montreal.

The timeline is hazy, however.

Canada remains "in the early throes" of lithium and rare earth metals development for electric car batteries — minerals Bowles sees playing a crucial role in establishing the seaway as a "green corridor."

"We don't have it really well evaluated yet," he said in an interview. The "big challenge for Canada" remains getting hydraulic mining shovels in the ground.

The country has deposits of most of the 31 critical minerals listed in a strategy laid out by Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson in December, but the government aims initially to focus on the six with the greatest potential for growth.

Those include lithium, graphite, nickel, cobalt, copper and the group of 17 metals and minerals known as rare earth elements.

There are already significant mining operations in nickel, copper and cobalt, as well as smaller graphite operations.

Canada is not a commercial producer of rare earth elements, though it does have some of the largest-known deposits. The Tanco mine in Manitoba is the only lithium mine operating now, but at least one more is on tap to reopen in Quebec this year.

The strategy and the $3.8 billion investments in last year's federal budget aim to encourage new exploration, expedite regulatory and environmental reviews, build infrastructure to support discovery of new deposits and build equity partnerships with Indigenous people.

Less than a week before the federal government unveils its new budget — and on the eve of U.S. President Joe Biden's visit to Canada — the Chamber of Marine Commerce also called on Ottawa to follow America's lead on major funding for transport infrastructure.

The massive U.S. Inflation Reduction Act targeting climate change includes US$3 billion to reduce air pollution at ports by installing zero-emission equipment. Separately, the U.S. Department of Transportation has earmarked US$662 million for port infrastructure development this year.

"You see the Americans jumping ahead of the Canadians," Burrows said. "Where's Canada? We really are missing in action."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 22, 2023.

HIP CAPITALI$M

Field Trip Health & Wellness enters creditor protection, lays off staff

The Canadian Press

Field Trip Health & Wellness Ltd. says it has entered creditor protection and is exploring a sale of its business.

The Toronto-based company which operates four psychedelic therapy clinics says the Ontario Superior Court of Justice granted it a creditor protection order today under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act.

The order came after the company said its board of directors carefully considered the business's cash position and available alternatives only to determine creditor protection was in its best interest.

Field Trip now intends to conduct an expedited sale and investment solicitation process with the goal of reaching a deal that enables it to emerge from creditor protection.

It also says it carried out a "companywide" reduction impacting an unspecified number of corporate and clinical staff, and chairman and chief executive Ronan Levy stepped down.

Trading in the company's securities has been suspended and its common shares are being transferred to the NEX Board of TSX Venture Exchange during the suspension period.

Canada’s population grows by over 1 million for first time

Randy Thanthong-Knight, Bloomberg News 

Mar 22, 2023

Canada’s population grew 2.7 per cent in 2022, the fastest expansion among advanced economies and on par with many African nations.

The country added a record 1,050,110 people over a one-year period to Jan. 1, bringing the total population to 39,566,248, Statistics Canada reported Wednesday in Ottawa. International migration accounted for 95.9 per cent of the growth.

It marks the first time the immigrant-friendly northern nation grew by more than a million people in a year. If sustained, that growth rate would lead to Canada doubling in size in about 26 years, the statistics agency said.

The record-setting population growth is the result of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s plan to add about half a million new permanent residents annually. The government has consistently raised its immigration target to expand the workforce and boost economic growth, but that also threatens to worsen shortages of housing and health-care workers.

Still, recent polling by Nanos Research Group for Bloomberg News shows 52 per cent of respondents say Trudeau’s plan will have a positive impact on Canada’s economy. That compares with 38 per cent who see the increase as a negative.

While there is broad public support for the open-door policy, rapid population growth in urban centers has sent rents soaring and forced many people to leave major cities to search for affordable housing elsewhere.

With assistance from Erik Hertzberg.

Liberals introduce legislation to create a corporate ownership registry

Nojoud Al Mallees, The Canadian Press Mar 22, 2023

The federal Liberals are moving ahead with plans to create an ownership registry after promising to increase transparency about who owns and controls corporations.

Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne has tabled legislation that would create a corporate beneficial ownership registry. 

The prospective registry is expected to have the goal of making it easier to identify owners of corporations who launder money, commit financial crimes or evade taxes. 

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's mandate letter to Champagne after the last federal election included instructions to create such a registry.

The Liberals' 2021 budget dedicated $2.1 million over two years "to support the implementation of a publicly accessible corporate beneficial ownership registry by 2025."

But the Liberals' supply-and-confidence agreement with New Democrats, signed a year ago, required a quicker timeline. 

In that deal, which sees the NDP supporting the government on key votes in exchange for movement on NDP priorities, the federal government committed to implementing the registry by the end of 2023. 

In a statement, NDP finance critic Daniel Blaikie said his party has been pushing for the creation of the registry "to make it harder for wealthy tax dodgers, corrupt businesspeople and sanctioned Russian oligarchs to hide their assets in Canada."

The federal government held public consultations in 2020 with a range of stakeholders — including law enforcement, tax agencies and industry associations — and found nearly all agreed with the idea of creating a registry.

Activist investor wants Parkland to sell or spin off Burnaby refinery

Amanda Stephenson , The Canadian Press Mar 22, 2023

A U.S. activist investor has set its sights on Calgary-based Parkland Corp., urging the fuel retailer to consider selling or spinning off its Burnaby refinery.

New York-based Engine Capital LP., which owns about a two per cent stake in Parkland, sent a letter to the company's board on Wednesday. In the letter, Engine criticized Parkland for being "unable to translate its advantaged strategic position and quality assets into adequate returns for shareholders," and said the company could achieve better performance by becoming a pure play fuel and convenience retailer and getting rid of non-core assets.

"We are particularly troubled by Parkland’s staggering underperformance compared to Canadian convenience retailer champion, Alimentation Couche-Tard," Engine managing partner Arnaud Ajdler and partner Brad Favreau wrote, adding the investment fund proposes Parkland sell or spin off its Burnaby, B.C. refinery as well as its heating oil and propane distribution businesses.

"We aware of several parties interested in these different assets," they wrote.

Parkland purchased the Burnaby refinery — which refines 55,000 barrels per day of crude and synthetic oil into gasoline, diesel, jet fuels and more — from Chevron Canada for $1.5 billion in 2017.

On the retail side, Parkland is one of the fastest growing independent fuel suppliers and marketers in North America, with a network of retail service stations across Canada, the northern U.S., and the Caribbean. 

Its On the Run convenience store brand is expected to have more than 1,000 locations by 2024.

Engine is also calling for a refresh of Parkland's board. The activist investor criticized the company for the length of time some board members — including chair Jim Pantelidis — have served, as well as its approach to executive compensation. 

Engine, which is requesting a meeting with the board, said in its letter that if the board is unwilling to consider its proposals it should consider a sale of the entire company to either private equity or "strategic buyers."

On its website, Engine Capital says it launched in 2013 and often engages with management teams and boards of directors to create value for the benefit of all shareholders.

"We are looking for undervalued companies where we understand the reason for the mispricing and where change is occurring to close this value gap," the investment fund states.

In a note to clients Wednesday, RBC Capital Markets analyst Luke Davis said he believes that in general, Parkland's major shareholders are aligned with the company's current strategy and "tend to be passive, though the key concerns outlined have been points of contention for select investors and could gain some traction."

Engine said in its letter to the board that it believes Parkland's stock could be worth around $45 per share, a 55 per cent premium to its recent price. 

Parkland shares were up close to nine per cent as of mid-day Wednesday, at $31.82.

CALL IT WHAT IT IS; FRACKQUAKE

Largest recorded Alberta earthquake not natural, from oilsands wastewater: study

Bob Weber, The Canadian Press

Mar 23, 2023

The largest recorded earthquake in Alberta's history was not a natural event, but most likely caused by disposal of oilsands wastewater, new research has concluded. 

"This event was caused by wastewater disposal," said Ryan Schultz, a Canadian seismologist who helped conduct the research while at Stanford University in California.

In November, parts of Alberta near the northwestern town of Peace River were rocked by a series of quakes culminating in one that reached a 5.6 magnitude. 

Residents reported being knocked to their knees. The earth was pushed upward by more than three centimetres — enough to register on satellites.

Oilpatch techniques, such as deep disposal wells that inject wastewater kilometres underground, can induce earthquakes. One such well located near the earthquake site, used to dispose of water used in oilsands operations, has injected more than one million cubic metres of wastewater down about two kilometres. 

After the record-breaking quake occurred, the Alberta Geological Survey, a branch of the province's energy regulator, attributed it to natural causes. The centre of the quake, then estimated to be six kilometres underground, was thought too deep and too far away from oilpatch activity in time and space to have been generated by industry.  

Not so, said Schultz.

A closer and more thorough look at the data brought the centre of the quake up to about four kilometres beneath the surface. That figure is now reflected in the regulator's catalogue of Alberta quakes. 

Similarly, a look at previous research on so-called "induced seismicity" revealed long lag times between deep-well water injection and earthquakes. 

A previous disposal site in Alberta started quaking three years after pumping began, Schultz said. A Dutch disposal well didn't start causing earthquakes for decades. 

As well, history shows deep water disposal can cause earthquakes up to 20 kilometres away. Alberta's November earthquakes were nowhere near that distant.

"The clusters of earthquakes were right on top of a deep disposal well," Schultz said.

His paper, co-authored by scientists at the University of Alberta as well as Natural Resources Canada and published in Geophysical Research Letters, suggests that the injected water forced itself between the two sides of a fault deep in the earth. That water was enough to reduce the friction holding the two sides together and eventually resulted in a slippage that shook the surface. 

Statistical analysis of correlation between the quakes and the underground pumping was conclusive, Schultz said. 

"We had a confidence somewhere between 89 and 97 per cent just in the timing," he said. "There is enough information to start making these kinds of links."

Schultz said the findings could have big implications for Canada's and Alberta's climate change plans. 

Both jurisdictions favour reducing the climate impact of the province's energy industry by pumping vast amounts of waste carbon dioxide deep underground, much as wastewater is injected. So-called carbon capture and storage could have the same seismic effects as deep wastewater disposal, Schultz said.

"If carbon capture is going to be done at a scale that is going to combat climate change, then significant amounts of volume need to be put in the ground," he said. "You might expect then also getting these types of earthquakes the more volume that you store."

That doesn't necessarily mean carbon capture and storage is a bad idea, he said, but it means a lot more seismic monitoring needs to take place around the sites to keep track of what's happening deep in the earth. 

"This could be an issue," Schultz said. "Monitoring will tell.

"You need to be able to see what is going on."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 23, 2023.