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What is natural gas? Natural gas is a fossil fuel. This means that, like oil and coal, it was formed from the remains of plants and animals buried under many layers of sediment millions of years ago. Heat and pressure created chemical changes over time, transforming the material into hydrocarbons such as natural gas. Today this important energy source is found in sedimentary rock throughout the world.
What are the properties of natural gas? The main ingredient of natural gas is methane, but it may have small amounts of other gases (including ethane, propane and butane). Natural gas is colourless and odourless in its pure form. The distinctive "rotten egg" smell we often associate with natural gas is actually an odour-causing substance, called mercaptan, added to gas for safety reasons. When burned, natural gas gives off a great deal of energy while producing few emissions.
How is natural gas used? Natural gas is abundant, safe, reliable, efficient and a cleaner-burning option than other fossil fuels. Because of these properties, natural gas is a popular fuel for heating our homes, cooking our food, fueling transportation, generating electricity, running industrial plants and providing raw material for a range of products. Natural gas provides almost a third of the energy used by Canadians.
Where is natural gas found in Canada? Natural gas is found in several regions across Canada. British Columbia, Alberta, Quebec, Nova Scotia and the Northwest Territories all have significant natural gas resources. More gas is becoming available in Canada with the use of advanced technologies to develop new supply such as shale gas and tight gas. Today Canada has more than 100 years of supply at current demand levels.
What is conventional and unconventional gas production? • Conventional: Easier to produce. Typically found in highly permeable reservoirs with sufficient pressure to allow the gas to flow. Once accessed, easily recovered. • Unconventional: More difficult to produce, involving recovery from harder to access reservoirs and less permeable rock formations. Common examples include shale gas, tight gas and coalbed methane. Requires specialized production techniques to stimulate rock formations and help the gas to flow.
Natural gas bubbles up from a spring near Capetown, California. Natural gas is mostly composed of methane, a naturally occuring greenhouse gas. Natural gas forms as organic and inorganic material undergoes complex molecular changes due to intense pressure and temperature. Natural gas, like all fossil fuels, takes millions of years to develop.
The Burgan oil field, in Kuwait, is one of the richest oil fields in the world. Natural gas, some of which is seen burning here, is often found near deposits of oil and coal.
A natural gas geyser fuels the flame at Flaming Geyser State Park, near Seattle, Washington. There are no water geysers in the park, but several flames light up from underground methane seeps. A methane seep is a puncture in a natural gas field below the surface of the Earth. The methane, a flammable gas, seeps up into the atmosphere..
High-pressure hoses shoot hot water to melt permafrost that sits atop a gas field in Russia. Much of the Russian region of Siberia is covered in a thick layer of permafrost for much of the year, making industrial and agricultural activities difficult and expensive.
The North Sea is another source of natural gas used in Europe. Here, an oil worker seals a leak in a Scottish gas pipeline. These pipelines transport liquified natural gas (LNG) from the North Sea to Great Britain.
Hydraulic fracturing is one of the newest and most controversial methods of extracting natural gas. This illustration depicts the process, which involves very deep drilling sites. "USDW" denotes an underground source of drinking water.
Like all extractive activities, natural gas drilling can sometimes cause accidents. This burning crater, near Darvaza, Turkmenistan, is nicknamed "The Door to Hell." The crater was created after an accident during drilling in 1971. The "Door to Hell" is about 20 meters (66 feet) deep.
This facility in Algeria, is a typical natural gas plant. Here, clean natural gas is transported by pipeline hundreds of kilometers away on the Mediterranean coast. Natural gas that cannot be used is simply burned off.
The Sable Offshore Energy Project (SOEP) is based in Halifax, Nova Scotia which explores for and produces natural gas near Sable Island on the edge of the Nova Scotian continental shelf. SOEP produces between 400 and 500 million cubic feet (14,000,000 m3) of natural gas and 20,000 barrels (3,200 m3) of natural gas liquids every day.
