Has oil and gas drilling under the Great Lakes been successful in Canada?
Since 1959, there have been three oil spill incidents on the Canadian side of Lake Erie, of which only one was directly attributed to a drilling operation. There have been no reported oil releases from subsurface formations into overlying waters during any Canadian drilling or production operations. Approximately 2,200 vertical gas extraction wells have been drilled in Canada under Lake Erie since 1913, approximately 550 of which are currently active. Canadian regulations stipulate that wells drilled directly into the lake bottom may only extract gas. Wells that produce both oil and gas must be plugged and abandoned. [BACK] • Is oil and gas drilling under the Great Lakes currently allowed in the U.S.? No. Further oil and gas exploration and drilling is not currently allowed in U.S. waters. However, wells drilled under the Great Lakes in the past remain operational. There is currently a moratorium in the U.S. on all oil and gas drilling under the Great Lakes. Section 503 of the Energy a
