Weyburn CO 2 Monitoring and Storage Project : Geoscience Framework Update 1

Geological storage of CO2 is considered to be among the most promising methods of effectively reducing greenhouse gas emissions to the atmosphere. The IEA Weyburn CO2 Monitoring and Storage Project is a research effort studying geological storage of CO2 within Mississippian carbonates of the Weyburn Midale Pool in southeastern Saskatchewan. The Geoscience Framework portion of this project provides data on the integrity of the geological container that will be used for risk analysis and to model the long-term fate of CO2 in the subsurface. All major stratigraphic units throughout the geologic column, and many subordinate evaporite layers, are being mapped within a 200 x 200 km region of southeastern Saskatchewan and parts of Montana and North Dakota. Approximately 1600 km of 2D seismic data in this area will be integrated with the stratigraphic information which will help to define basement structures that may have influenced depositional features. Hydrogeological data are undergoing rigorous examination to update basin hydrostratigraphy to better define the distribution of flow units and the directions and rates of subsurface and near-surface fluid movements. Detailed geological investigations are being performed on selected geological units to better determine the character of aquitards (seals) and aquifers. The occurrence and distribution of surface lineaments have been mapped in detail to assess which lineaments are surface expressions of deeper geological features that may influence subsurface fluid movement. Soil gas studies are being performed to monitor soil gas compositions and to determine if and how soil gas contents change across surface lineaments. The above data are being integrated into a common earth model to describe the geosphere within the Weyburn Project area.