CAGC Column

Crew counts were virtually non existent in June however we have seen some life return to the industry in July and August. We have taken the approach as being “cautiously optimist” going into the fall and winter. Markets have pretty much stabilized and other than a few off days appear to be continuing in a upward manner. Natural Gas prices remain low but Oil has been healthy hovering around the $70 mark.

In Alberta we are holding our Annual Geophysical Seminar in Red Deer on Sept 23rd and 24th. Lots of important issues including bringing in Dr. Patricia Pitsel to talk about Flu Pandemic preparation. She gave an excellent presentation through the Alberta Government last winter but as Swine Flu has replaced Bird Flu this appears to be more and timelier. See our website for further information and the full agenda.

October marks our Annual Seismic in Motion (SIM) field trip. Participants spend the day in the field observing the various aspects of seismic and have the opportunity to hear and see contractors performing seismic work It is being offered October 6, 7 or 8, 2009.

Location: Outside of Calgary, Alberta
Cost: $250 + GST per participant
Pick-up: Westin Hotel, downtown Calgary – 7:00 to 7:30 AM

The day finishes at approximately 6:00 PM in the same spot. A hot lunch is provided. Good walking gear is required as there is some uphill and downhill walking. The CAGC will provide safety equipment, safety coordinator and a tour guide for each group. This event fills up quickly so book spots early. It is open both to industry and members of the public.

Once again we have teamed up with CSEG Outreach Committee and the CAPP GEO committee to host 150 students from the Calgary Board of Education (CBE) system. We have broadened this to include students from SAIT and from U of C. This is an exciting partnership that produces an excellent opportunity for youth to see something of the Energy business and understand some of its intricacies. In addition we have hosted Industry folks, Oil Company Staff, Regulators, Interested Stakeholders, and the Media. The reviews have continued to be outstanding. For our efforts this past year the three Associations won the Mayor’s Award for Excellence for Educational Partnerships.

This event has been hosted in Alberta from 2006 through 2008. It features all aspects of seismic – from surveying to line cutting, from drilling to recording, and features special demonstrations of shooting seismic and observing a helicopter long line rescue operation. This event is put on by the contractors and is supported by the Oil Companies in a truly cooperative manner. Such an event takes a great deal of time, effort and resources to put together.

Over the years we have put together a DVD and CD of the event running about 20 minutes. One was fashioned after a Seismic 101 while the other was set up to highlight our various occupations and training through Enform. Another was geared towards the youth attending the event. They are offered free of charge through the Association in case you might have interest in viewing the activity.

We have distributed this product amongst the industry, regulators and also to many educational outlets. A number of our members have used this footage in their public stakeholder engagements.

The event is characterized as a day out in the field. Seismic has become increasingly linear with various aspects separated by time and distance. Gone are the days when the office staff and/or even the geophysicists get out to the field to spend time observing operations. This opportunity presents itself as a benign version of seismic bringing all aspects to one location. In a safe and organization manner individuals are able to spend the day on the ground viewing demonstrations, interacting with contractors who do the work and have the field expertise and gaining a valuable understanding of the challenges involved in the operations themselves.

It is the type of field trip that holds interest for any type of personality. The demonstrations are quick and move along seamlessly thus ensuring they keep the participant’s attention. As we have as many as two dozen contractors involved, participants have the opportunity to see many different aspects, many different equipment types and hear from many different individuals. The flavour of the day is variety. Whether the individual’s interest is piqued by hands on learning, by visual learning or by listening to presenters, this field trip has them all.

We limit the number of participants on each day for reasons of transportation and safety.

The event is generally fully subscribed so if you have an interest we encourage you to register soon. Information and registration is available on our website – www.cagc.ca

Hope to see you out there.

From the Thursday Files

Both optimists and pessimists contribute to our society. The optimist invents the airplane and the pessimist the parachute.
– Gil Stern