Alberta families affected by oilpatch odours may testify in U.S. Senate hearings

EDMONTON – Families affected by odours from oilsands operations in northern Alberta have been invited to testify at United States Senate hearings on the Keystone XL pipeline.

Lawyer Keith Wilson, who represents the families in the Peace River area, says they are still deciding whether they want to testify.

The smells are coming from facilities owned by Baytex Energy.

Alberta’s energy regulator concluded after public hearings that the odours could be causing health problems and ordered the smells to be cleaned up.

The U.S. hearings are being led by Sen. Barbara Boxer, head of the environment and public works committee and a determined critic of the Keystone XL project.

She previously heard testimony from Dr. John O’Connor, an Alberta doctor who raised alarms about cancer rates in Fort Chipewyan, downstream of major oilsands plants.

Alberta Health recently concluded that while two types of cancers in the community are higher than average, they are unlikely to be linked to environmental contamination.