Screening and Ranking of Hydrocarbon Reservoirs for CO2 Storage in the Alberta Basin, Canada

Human activity since the industrial revolution has had the effect of increasing atmospheric concentrations of gases with a greenhouse effect, such as carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4), leading to climate warming and weather changes (Bryant, 1997; Jepma and Munasinghe, 1998). Because of its relative abundance compared with the other greenhouse gases, CO2 is by far the most important, being responsible for about 64% of the enhanced “greenhouse effect” (Bryant, 1997). Given their inherent advantages, such as availability, competitive cost, ease of transport and storage, and large resources, fossil fuels which today provide about 75% of the world’s energy (84% in the US and 73% in Canada) are likely to continue to remain a major component of world’s energy supply for at least this century (Jepma and Munasinghe, 1998; Bajura, 2000). Thus, the world, including Canada and the US, needs to reduce CO2 emissions into the atmosphere while at the same time ensuring sustainable economic development.