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
Racism in the Tar Sands: exploiting foreign workers and poisoning indigenous people
Racism in the Tar Sands: exploiting foreign workers and poisoning indigenous people
June 12, 2008
By Macdonald Stainsby
The giant corporations that are determined to exploit the Alberta tar sands face a major problem — a serious shortage of local labour to do the actual work. So the Canadian and Albertan governments have a plan, ideal in their eyes, to solve the crunch.
BC: Shortage of skilled workers to continue
More articles softening up the population for the massive expansion of the Temporary foreign worker programs, being brought in by the tag team of THe SPP and TILMA, and done in time to build Olympic and Tar Sands infrastructure... Yet, due to the size of the proposed Gigaproject as well as the 2010 Games this is actually true-- the question not being asked is are we prepared to allow projects with such dire prospects?
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Shortage of skilled workers to continue
Written by GORDON HOEKSTRA
Citizen staff
Friday, 06 June 2008
First Nations town plans road blockade
First Nations town plans road blockade
Florence Loyie, The Edmonton Journal
June 13, 2008
EDMONTON - A First Nations community straddling a section of the border between northern Alberta and British Columbia is planning a blockade later this month to draw attention to health and safety concerns caused by oil and gas exploration on its traditional lands.
Clayton Anderson, a consultant working for Kelly Lake Cree Nation, said the blockade will be held in conjunction with an emergency disaster preparedness drill the community plans for next week.
"Small band has big bite"
Small band has big bite
Slave River Journal, June 11/2008
A small First Nation group in the southern part of the Municipality of Wood Buffalo is suing the Alberta provincial government for failing to ensure its treaty rights. Industrial encroachment near the Chipewyan Prairie Dene First Nation is destroying their way of life, according to Chief Vern Janvier.
“Today we’re at the point where we see no future where we are,” Janvier told reporters in a press conference Wednesday, June 4.
Finding their voice [Economist]
Finding their voice [Economist]
Jun 12th 2008 | OTTAWA
Canada delivers an official apology to its increasingly assertive indigenous peoples
Green groups say US refiners produce more greenhouse gases with tar sands
Green groups say US refiners produce more greenhouse gases with oilsands
(AlbertaIndex, June 10, Tuesday) --- Two green lobbies have charged that US refiners will produce much more greenhouse gases processing Canada’s oilsands than if they used ‘traditional’ crude oil.
The Washington DC-based Environmental Integrity Project (EIP) and Toronto-headquartered Environmental Defence Canada (EDC) said the emissions production increase would be the equivalent of 16 new refineries in the US.
Heavy Problem: Dirtier Oil, Though Cheaper, Sparks Green Backlash
Heavy Problem: Dirtier Oil, Though Cheaper, Sparks Green Backlash
June 12, 2008, 11:45 am
The Wall Street Journal’s Ben Casselman reports:
Cheap oil! Get your cheap oil here!
Well, “cheap” may be pushing it. But even as benchmark crude futures have soared above $130 per barrel, there’s still oil out there for about $105 a barrel. The bad news: it’s nasty stuff.
No balance on tar sands
No balance on tar sands
Jun 10, 2008 04:30 AM
Prime Minister Stephen Harper often talks about finding the right balance between economic growth and environmental protection.
But Harper put growth well ahead of the environment last week when he gave the green light to Imperial Oil's proposed $8 billion Kearl tar-sands project, which is predicted to create 3.7 million tonnes of greenhouse gases annually – equivalent to putting another 800,000 cars on the road.
Council backs spill response planning [Kitimat]
Council backs spill response planning
June 11, 2008
A Geographic Response Plan (GRP) is being piloted for Kitimat through the BC Environment ministry.
The project is being led by Mike Drumm, from the ministry office in Smithers.
He told city council a GRP contains maps and descriptions of sensitive natural and cultural resources as well as outline strategies to minimize damage from an oil spill.
“GRPs are designed to reduce those decision making times,” explained Drumm.
Reopen NAFTA, reclaim our oil
Reopen NAFTA, reclaim our oil
Linda McQuaig
Canada will need tough negotiators to gain parity in trade agreement.
Yes, let's punish the official who leaked the Canadian memo that created
heat for Barack Obama, future president of the United States.
But let's not waste much time examining the mouth of this particular gift
horse.
Let's just consider ourselves lucky that the heated US Democratic
presidential race may result in NAFTA (the North American Free Trade
Agreement) being put back on the table.
NAFTA is deeply flawed from Canada's point of view. We failed to get the
