Eleanor Oldham, Senior Geophysicist
On 11th-13th September I attended the Geological Society’s 3rd CCS Symposium, focusing on Characterisation and Monitoring of Containment. This was my second visit to this annual event and it seems to be growing year on year, expanding into a third day and with more than 100 in-person attendees.
My personal highlights from the Symposium were learning about the progress made (and lessons learned) at active CCS injection sites in Australia, the USA and Canada. It was also interesting to hear updates from the future storage sites being progressed in the UK and Europe, including how the teams will mitigate risks by employing a variety of monitoring strategies. Until now, much of the talk I’d heard about monitoring had focused on 4D seismic, however, various projects are now looking towards alternative monitoring technologies, such as gravimetry and ground level deformation. This was reassuring, as my own insight from the rock physics perspective suggests that not every potential CCS site has favourable geological properties for seismic monitoring to be successful.
On the subject of rock physics, I presented a (brief!) overview of how rock physics can be used to add value to the geological characterisation of the storage complex and why rock physics is an essential part of 4D seismic feasibility modelling. I teach the Essentials of Rock Physics course and, when I began to develop this course for CCS applications, I found a dearth of information available in the public domain. My motivation for speaking at the Symposium was therefore to shine a light on rock physics, and the contribution it can make to a domain where maximizing the value of information is of critical importance.
As well as the expected presentations and posters, the Symposium also dedicated a few hours to an interactive workshop on bowtie analysis. All attendees were assigned to a group and instructed to look at a different uncertainties related to the Quest CCS project in Canada. Not only did this give everyone a hand-on experience of how to use bowtie analysis to evaluate (and mitigate) potential risks, but it allowed us to get to know more about our fellow attendees.
Overall, the Geological Society’s 3rd CCS Symposium was a huge success. And the cherry on the cake was learning that, after battling for many years, the Geological Society have now signed a 999 year lease to remain in their premises in Burlington House. By then we should be up to the 1002nd CCS Symposium.. I wonder what the world will look like then!
