Statement on BCER’s Oversight of LNG Canada and Emissions
DATE ISSUED: June 25, 2026
The BC Energy Regulator’s oversight of LNG Canada is grounded in our statutory mandate to protect public safety and safeguard the environment. This is reinforced through stringent permit conditions under the Energy Resource Activities Act (ERAA) and the Environmental Management Act and delivered through a comprehensive and risk-informed approach to compliance management and enforcement.
The BCER requires permit holders to operate in a manner that minimizes emissions and complies with all permit conditions. LNG Canada’s permits include extensive monitoring and reporting requirements designed to ensure that the facility meets environmental quality standards and does not pose a hazard to local residents’ health or regional air quality. The results of this monitoring are regularly reviewed by air quality scientists at the BCER to ensure ongoing compliance. Where non-compliance occurs, the BCER takes appropriate compliance action, as reflected in the April 21 Order issued to LNG Canada. The Order requires LNG Canada to take steps to bring the facility’s black smoke emissions back into compliance with the permit conditions. If a non-compliance is not addressed, the BCER takes escalating enforcement action.
LNG Canada holds an authorization under the Environmental Management Act to discharge emissions to the atmosphere within defined limits and strict conditions set out in its air waste discharge permit. Since the issuance of this permit in 2024, monitoring data from community stations in Kitimat have not shown measurements exceeding the BC Ambient Air Quality Objective metrics. While LNG Canada has reported ongoing instances where flaring from one or more of the facility’s flare systems is not consistent with the requirements of its air discharge permit to the BCER, these instances have not had a measurable impact on local air quality.
LNG facility flares are critical safety systems used during a range of operating scenarios, including routine operations, maintenance activities and process adjustments. The BCER has required LNG Canada to provide a suitable plan to address the flare-tip integrity concern and reduce flaring rates.
In our ongoing work to ensure the airshed in Kitimat remains safe for all residents in light of the greater than expected flaring volumes, the BCER required LNG Canada to retain a third-party Qualified Professional to undertake and submit an updated air dispersion modelling assessment. The assessment found the effect of the increased flaring volumes on local air quality is small to negligible and is not discernible from other local sources. The updated modelling shows no significant deviation from the original modelling submitted with the air discharge permit application. The BCER’s technical experts reviewed the assessment and found it reasonable and appropriate for informing the BCER’s oversight of potential air quality impacts. This report is available on the BCER website: LNG-Canada-Flaring-Assessment_Oct-27-2025.pdf
The BCER has also deployed our Roaming Air Monitor (RAM) to measure air quality at several locations throughout Kitimat apart from those covered by the existing network of stationary air monitors. The RAM will continue its work in Kitimat through the summer and the data it gathers will be published in a future report. For a summary of previous data: Roaming-Air-Monitoring-Deployment-Kitimat-2024.pdf
For additional information on our oversight of flaring and the LNG Canada (LNGC) facility, please reference our following factsheets:
• Flaring and Air Quality Factsheet