On October 31, 2006, the Alberta Energy and Utility Board (EUB) issued a decision which granted conditional approval for EnCana Corporation to drill 15 coalbed methane (CBM) wells, construct 46 lengths of pipeline and upgrade a pipeline compressor in the Torrington area. The decision follows a four-day public hearing held in April 2006 - the first-ever methane hearings in the province of Alberta.

In its decision, the EUB addresses concerns raised during the hearing through a number of conditions. Of primary concern was the effect of the CBM wells on the local aquifers, which supply water for domestic and stock use.

Bennett Jones lawyers Shawn Munro and Kristen Lozynsky represented EnCana in this precedent setting hearing before the EUB. For more information about this decision, please visit: http://www.eub.ca/docs/documents/decisions/2006/2006-102.pdf