Tar Sands 101
The Tar Sands "Gigaproject" is the largest industrial project in human history and likely also the most destructive. The tar sands mining procedure releases at least three times the CO2 emissions as regular oil production and is slated to become the single largest industrial contributor in North America to Climate Change.
The tar sands are already slated to be the cause of up to the second fastest rate of deforestation on the planet behind the Amazon Rainforest Basin. Currently approved projects will see 3 million barrels of tar sands mock crude produced daily by 2018; for each barrel of oil up to as high as five barrels of water are used.
Human health in many communities has seriously taken a turn for the worse with many causes alleged to be from tar sands production. Tar sands production has led to many serious social issues throughout Alberta, from housing crises to the vast expansion of temporary foreign worker programs that racialize and exploit so-called non-citizens. Infrastructure from pipelines to refineries to super tanker oil traffic on the seas crosses the continent in all directions to allthree major oceans and the Gulf of Mexico.
The mock oil produced primarily is consumed in the United States and helps to subsidize continued wars of aggression against other oil producing nations such as Iraq, Venezuela and Iran.
To understand the tar sands in more depth, continue to our Tar Sands 101 reading list
B.C. government awards tenure to BP Canada for coalbed methane project
B.C. government awards tenure to BP Canada for coalbed methane project
December 8//2008
VANCOUVER, B.C. - The provincial government has given the green light to a contentious coalbed methane project in southeastern B.C.
Energy minister Richard Neufeld says BP Canada has been awarded tenure for its Mist Mountain project, near Fernie in the East Kootenay region.
Billions of litres of tainted tar sands water leaking: Report
Billions of litres of tainted oilsands water leaking: Report
Mike De Souza, Canwest News Service
Published: Tuesday, December 09, 2008
OTTAWA - Oilsands production is releasing four billion litres of
contaminated water into Alberta's groundwater and natural ecosystems every
year, according to a new national report that was immediately dismissed as
"false" by the provincial government.
The annual volume of water pollution in 2007 would have been enough to
fill Toronto's Rogers Centre, but could be stopped if the federal
StatoilHydro scraps C$16 bln tar sands upgrader downstream
StatoilHydro scraps C$16 bln oil sands upgrader
Thu Dec 4, 2008 2:21pm EST
(Recasts with additional comment and detail, changes dateline from OSLO)
CALGARY, Alberta, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Norway's StatoilHydro (STL.OL: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) said on Thursday it scrapped plans to build a C$16 billion ($12.6 billion) upgrader for its Canadian oil sands holdings, the latest in a string of big-ticket cancellations in the oil-rich but expensive region.
Alberta to seek tax breaks for tar sands
Alberta to seek tax breaks for oil sands
Capital writeoffs for bitumen upgraders on wish list for struggling sector, as finance ministers prepare to meet
SHAWN MCCARTHY
Globe and Mail // December 8, 2008
OTTAWA — The Alberta government is seeking federal tax breaks for the newly struggling oil sands sector, including accelerated capital writeoffs for upgraders, as sliding oil prices and high costs have caused companies to delay or shelve development plans.
Ottawa promises to protect tar sands from economic crisis
Ottawa promises to protect oilsands from economic crisis
Mike De Souza, Canwest News Service
Published: Friday, December 05, 2008
OTTAWA - The Harper government pledged to protect the oilsands sector from economic uncertainty as it challenged opposition parties on Friday to explain how their proposed coalition would regulate pollution from the western Canadian industry.
More time granted to comment on Keystone pipeline
More time granted to comment on pipeline
Groups petitioned U.S. State Department on behalf of farmers, ranchers
Thom Gabrukiewicz • tgabrukiew@argusleader.com • December 6, 2008
People will have much more time to comment on the application for a presidential permit required to build TransCanada's proposed Keystone XL pipeline.
Mackenzie pipeline stakeholders ''disappointed''
Mackenzie pipeline stakeholders ''disappointed'' at environmental review delay (Mackenzie-Delay)
CALGARY _ A panel examining the Mackenzie Valley natural gas pipeline project said Friday it will take another year to complete its long-awaited review in the latest setback for the multibillion-dollar plan that originally hoped to have gas flowing in 2009.
Tahltan Nation Applauds Government Decision to Suspend Coalbed Methane Development in the Sacred Headwaters
Tahltan Nation Applauds Government Decision to Suspend Coalbed Methane Development in the Sacred Headwaters
DEASE LAKE, BC, Dec. 5 /CNW/ - The Tahltan Central Council (TCC), the
organization responsible for protecting Tahltan Title and Rights, applauds
today's provincial government announcement to amend Shell Canada's petroleum
and natural gas tenure license. The amendment will stop Shell from exploring
and developing coalbed methane (CBM), a form of natural gas extracted from
coal beds, in the Klappan region. The Klappan is a region in northwestern
Foreign Canada Line workers win multi-million dollar human rights case
Foreign Canada Line workers win multi-million dollar human rights case
By Kelly Sinoski
December 3, 2008
Vancouver Sun
VANCOUVER - A group of temporary foreign workers who helped build the
Canada Line have won a multi-million dollar award from the BC Human Rights
Tribunal after it found they were discriminated against by their
employers.
SELI Canada and SNC Lavalin, which was boring parallel tunnels under
downtown Vancouver, has been under the microscope since early last year
after a series of complaints to the Labour Relations Board, the B.C. Human
Tar sands threatens millions of birds, report says
Tar sands threatens millions of birds, report says
MARTIN MITTELSTAEDT
From Tuesday's Globe and Mail
December 2, 2008
The development of the tar sands could lead to the loss of more than 160 million birds over the next 30 to 50 years because of the elimination of habitat and deaths from drowning in tailings ponds, according to a report being released today.
