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
Offshore Drilling Backlash May Boost Shale, Tar Sands
Offshore Drilling Backlash May Boost Shale, Oil Sands
*Date:* /15-Jun-10/
*Author:* Jon Hurdle and Jeffrey Jones
The massive Gulf oil spill may hasten the development of shale gas and oil
sands, North America's two most important emerging energy sources.
The risk of pursuing deepwater oil reserves dwarfs the environmental concerns
facing both onshore sectors.
Neither Canadian oil sands petroleum nor natural gas from U.S. shale beds will
immediately substitute for delayed Gulf of Mexico crude output in the wake of a
Alberta tar sands equipment supplier opens in Billings, Montana
Alberta tar sands equipment supplier opens in Billings
By KIM BRIGGEMAN of the Missoulian | June 9, 2010
A major supplier of equipment to the rapidly expanding oil and gas market in the Alberta tar sands has set up shop in Billings.
Berry Y&V Fabricators plans to assemble modules in Montana and truck them north to the oil sands fields near Fort McMurray, according to a report last week in the Edmonton Journal.
Shaky Foundations: Toxic Sources, Tainted Money
The Decline of Big Green, Part One
Shaky Foundations: Toxic Sources, Tainted Money
Weekend Edition
June 4 - 6, 2010
By JEFFREY ST. CLAIR
Back at the start of the 20th century, John D. Rockefeller remarked that "not even God himself can keep me from giving my money to the University of Chicago." The old bandit's investments duly paid off, with platoons of Chicago economists and jurists all hymning the free market and invoking the inexorable laws requiring that some be rich and many be poor.
Another big year for Alberta tar sands
Another big year for Alberta oil sands
By QMI Agency
Last Updated: June 7, 2010
Alberta oilsands production could see another big year as the economic recovery puts global crude demand back on track.
Overall production in the region ramped up 14% in 2009 despite the widespread economic downturn, unstable crude prices and global criticism aimed at Fort McMurray operations.
In 2009, Alberta squeezed out 1.49 millionbarrels per day of raw crude bitumen from the oilsands for a total of 544 million barrels, according to the province’s Energy Resources Conservation Board.
Mexico: Civil Society Divided Ahead of Climate Summit (COP 16)
Mexico: Civil Society Divided Ahead of Climate Summit
Written by Emilio Godoy
Sunday, 06 June 2010
(IPS) - With less than six months before Mexico hosts the next global climate change summit, Mexican environmental organisations hosting the parallel civil society forum are divided on how to carry it out -- which some fear could ultimately weaken their role at the negotiating table.
2 weeks added to Keystone pipeline comment period (Kansas City, Mo.)
2 weeks added to Keystone pipeline comment period
By MARIA SUDEKUM FISHER
KANSAS CITY, Mo.
June 8 2010
A federal agency on Wednesday delayed approval of a draft environmental impact statement on TransCanada's $12 billion Keystone pipeline, which will move oil from Canada through several northern and Midwestern states.
The U.S. Department of State added two weeks to the public comment period for the Keystone pipeline's impact statement, pushing the end of the comment period to July 2 instead of June 16, a State Department official said.
Stelmach defends tar sands on foreign, domestic fronts
Stelmach defends oilsands on foreign, domestic fronts
Premier calls protests 'unfortunate'
By Jason Fekete, with files from Dina O'Meara, Calgary Herald, and the Edmonton Journal, Calgary Herald June 10, 2010
Alberta's oilsands are facing a new cross-border assault, with a community in the U.S. boycotting the resource and a cosmetics store in Canada demanding development be halted.
Gulf oil disaster doesn’t make the tar sands green
Gulf oil disaster doesn’t make the tar sands green
Jeff Rubin's Blog // Globe and Mail
Wednesday, June 9, 2010 5:59 AM
Syncrude fire injures 5
Syncrude fire injures 5
June 10, 2010
The Canadian Press
Five workers were injured Thursday afternoon in a fire at Syncrude's Mildred
Lake facility in northern Alberta.
Three of the five were flown by air ambulance to an Edmonton hospital after
the blaze broke out about 2 p.m., said Syncrude spokesperson Cheryl Robb,
who had little other information.
"All I know is they were medevaced to Edmonton," she said six hours after
the incident. "I don't know the extent of their injuries or any further
details."
Government of Morocco on Tar Sands 'potential' in Morocco.
This is a government ministry of Morocco report. Moroccans refer to tar sands and oil shale almost interchangeably, and even refer to Alberta's giant "oil shale" mines.
--M
Morocco Oil Shale Deposits, an Alternative Oil Source Following Oil Spill in US Golf
Thursday, May 20 2010 11:43
