CNRL Appeals Fine for 400 Bird Deaths: Triggers Public Release of AER Investigation
Data highlights obvious risks that failed to be mitigated
This blog recaps an incident that happened in 2022, for which CNRL is now appealing a fine they received in 2024. The data and details of the incident from the Alberta Energy Regulator were made public in February 2025 as a result of the appeals process.
Read first – A recap of the incident
In 2021, Canadian Natural Resources Limited (CNRL) allowed an island to form in one of their tailings ponds – despite knowing such islands attract migratory birds and pose serious risks to wildlife. These artificial habitats are a known hazard, which is why CNRL has standard procedures to prevent and remove them. We previously covered the issue here.
Following an investigation from the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER), CNRL was fined $278,000 for failing to act, which resulting in the deaths of over 400 birds and other unknown risks to wildlife – read more.
“Tailings ponds islands” seen from space (well, by satellite)
Until recently, much of the language in public reports notes only one island. Now that we have the full investigation from the regulator, the satellite imagery provided by CNRL shows two islands. There is the East TRV Island (ETI) which is where the bird landing took place, and an island outlined in green labelled “Problem Island” (see Figure 1.)
Figure 1. Map displaying the East TRV Island (ETI) where the bird landings took place. An additional island is also seen outlined in green and labelled “Problem Island”, marked by the company for removal (2021).
Figure 2. Satellite imagery of the East TRV Island (ETI) during spring of 2021 and 2022.
Figure 3. Satellite imagery of both islands (“ETI” and “problem island”) in the tailings pond in June 2022.
Figures 1, 2 and 3 clearly show the East TRV Island (ETI), located within CNRL’s tailings pond—an obvious hazard known to attract birds looking to rest or nest.
In Figure 1, an additional island on the west side of the pond, labeled “problem island,” is circled in green. CNRL itself flagged this island for removal in its September 2021 Wildlife Mitigation Recommendations Plan. Strangely, ETI—also visible in the same satellite imagery—was ignored and not marked for removal.
Yet by June 2022 (Figure 3), the “problem island” still hadn’t been removed. This means CNRL failed to act before spring migration, and the island remained even after most birds had likely passed through. By the time this image (figure 3) was taken, birds were already nesting on ETI.
This raises the question – why was one island prioritized while another, clearly a risk, was ignored? And if CNRL didn’t remove the island it had flagged, how committed is it to its mitigation plan?
The Alberta Energy Regulator’s report doesn’t explain why the “problem island” marked for removal still exists in the following year or whether it was even monitored—despite the ongoing risks it poses.
The evidence from these figures highlights two concerns:
- CNRL marked a “problem island” for removal but ignored the nearby East TRV Island (ETI) even though this island was also clearly visible on satellite imagery.
- Even though they marked down the “problem island” for removal in 2021, it still existed in 2022 past breeding season. The presence of this “problem island” into the following year (2022) was not explored or questioned in the investigation.
Postcards from a Tailings Pond
Figure 4. Gulls appear to be flushed from the ETI.
Figure 5. Wildlife camera image of the gulls resting on the ETI.
Footage captures birds being flushed from the island, likely due to a predator’s presence. Flightless chicks, with nowhere else to go, have no choice but to flee directly into the tailings, where exposure to bitumen- known to impair flight, buoyancy, and survival- led to their deaths. Over 400 birds died.
Figure 6: Wildlife camera photo from CNRL. Appears the image was taken along the tailings pond shoreline, showing the ETI in the background with nesting birds.
The kicker? This was a preventable tragedy.
The Alberta Energy Regulator determined that CNRL did not take all the reasonable steps to prevent this incident from occurring. The company was well-aware of the risk posed by the island, having documented observations of gulls and “several species of conservation concern in preceding years” (and we also note that they named their wildlife camera “Gull Island”…). The tailings pond was categorized as a high-risk tailings facility with high risk of bird mortality under the Oil Sands Bird Contact Monitoring Program.
CNRL initially attempted to downplay the risks, claiming the pond was not high risk because no visible bitumen was present.
However, the details from the investigation (which was not previously publicly available, and we now have access because of CNRL’s decision to appeal the fine) confirmed that over 2 million cubic meters of tailings containing bitumen had been deposited in 2021. A photograph taken in July 2022 (figure 7) directly contradicts CNRL’s claims, showing floating bitumen in the tailings pond.
Figure 7. Image taken of the tailing pond where the incident occurred with visible bitumen floating in the industrial water.
Not only did CNRL fail to prevent the deaths of over 400 birds, they also failed to protect other wildlife in the region that repeatedly crossed the tailings to reach the island. Wolves, coyotes, and a black bear were observed (as detailed in the investigation), with some animals reported to have killed and eaten oiled birds. The health and safety of these animals is not addressed in the investigation, but there is a strong likelihood that if the animals ingested oiled birds and also came into contact with bitumen, there would be risks to their health.
Migratory Bird Act – “the defense of impossibility”
To deny any wrongdoing, CNRL is leaning on the Migratory Bird Act- federal legislation intended to protect migratory birds. The company argues that because of the act, once the birds’ established nests, nothing could be done as it would risk disturbing the birds.
However, as pointed out by the AER, there were indeed steps that CNRL could have taken, such as consulting a specialist regarding legal alternatives or setting up a barrier to protect the birds.
Figure 8. Major Investigations Team, File Brief 2022-057, p.169
Figure 9. Major Investigations Team, File Brief 2022-057, p. 184
CNRL is appealing their $ 278,000 fine
There is clear evidence of CNRL’s negligence in the Alberta Energy Regulator’s report and investigation that outline devastating consequences to wildlife. It is an egregious affront to any sense of accountability that CNRL is now appealing this decision. The AER already reduced the company’s fine by $100,000 for implementing wildlife deterrents to the island that were shown to be ineffective; birds had already nested and wolves, coyotes and black bears were still reported on the island. Nonetheless, the AER reduced the fine due to a “good faith effort”. Should we apply the logic of “at least they are trying” to billion-dollar companies that continuously boast about world-class environmental standards?
A Larger Systemic Failure
From the investigation, it is clear that CNRL understood the risks yet chose not to act. Their appeal of the already-reduced fine is not just troubling—it is flippant behaviour to their responsibility to mitigate environmental harm and highlights a deeper, systemic failure of environmental oversight in the oil sands industry.
Figure 10. Major Investigations Team, File Brief 2022-057, p. 181
With all the data available in the investigation, the Alberta Energy Regulator appears to be easing its foot off the gas pedal in meaningfully holding CNRL accountable.
CNRL continues its efforts to justify inaction and refuses to take accountability by paying a fine that is already reduced by $102,000, from the original amount of $380,000. This reinforces a troubling pattern of weak industry oversight and inadequate environmental protection in the industry. If a fine of this size is considered too much for a multi-billion-dollar company, what incentive is there to stand by Alberta’s communities, wildlife and waters?
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