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
Alberta Establishes Working Relationship with OPEC
ALBERTA IN TIE-UP WITH OPEC
Province will get voice in energy discussions
Claudia Cattaneo, Financial Post
Published: Monday, May 25, 2009
Chris Schwarz, Canwest News Service
For the first time, Alberta and the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries have established an official relationship. It's a new strategy with big implications, including potential investment by OPEC members in Canada's oil sands.
Should green-minded Norway invest in Canadian tar-sands?
Should green-minded Norway invest in Canadian oil-sands?
Last week, Greenpeace failed in its bid to force Norway's StatoilHydro to abandon a $2 billion investment in a project that it says produces 10 times the greenhouse gases as North Sea drilling.
By Tom Sullivan | Contributor to The Christian Science Monitor
from the May 27, 2009
Stockholm, Sweden - It came as little surprise when Norway's partially state-owned oil company, StatoilHydro, rejected a shareholder motion last week to pull out of a $2 billion tar-sands venture in Alberta, Canada.
Court orders tar sands corporations to list contents of tailings
Court orders oilsands to list contents of tailings
Ecojustice lawyers convince judge to overrule environment minister
By Hanneke Brooymans, The Edmonton Journal
May 28, 2009
More information about the toxic content of oilsands tailings ponds that sprawl over 130 square kilometres in northeast Alberta will soon be made public because of a Federal Court decision.
"N.W.T. fears pipeline guarantee for Alaska"
N.W.T. fears pipeline guarantee for Alaska
By Jeffrey Jones, Reuters
May 25, 2009
CALGARY - The Northwest Territories is worried a little-noticed plan to boost U.S. federal loan guarantees for an Alaska gas pipeline to $30 billion US could raise yet another impediment to the construction of the Mackenzie Valley pipeline.
Harper kicks up trade storm over U.S.'s ambitious low-carbon fuel rules
Cloudy forecast
Harper kicks up trade storm over U.S.'s ambitious low-carbon fuel rules
Alice Klein
Now Toronto May 25, 2009
It’s been a bad political week for the tar sands. Publicly, the Tories are still clinging to the cupid face they pulled on when U.S. President Barack Obama touched down in Ottawa this winter, but they’ve just pulled out the big, fat arrows and are aiming low.
As U.S. climate initiatives rev into real action, it shamefully ain’t our love that we Canucks are sending stateside.
"Tar sands' climate threat, security promise both exaggerated -- report"
Tar sands' climate threat, security promise both exaggerated -- report
By NATHANIAL GRONEWOLD, Greenwire [NYTimes]
Published: May 22, 2009
NEW YORK -- Further development of Alberta's famous oil sands will be neither the climate disaster that activists fear nor the energy security panacea that proponents suggest it is, the Council on Foreign Relations concludes in a new report.
Groups unhappy with Chevron expansion (Bay Area)
Groups unhappy with Chevron expansion
May 20, 2009
By Wayne Freedman
There may be a refinery upgrade in Richmond, but if environmental groups have it their way, it may never happen. This is frustrating Chevron.
"Well the whole intent of the project is to help modernize the refinery," said Chevron spokesman Dean O'Hair.
But the intent of lawyers was to delay it. There was wrangling in Superior Court after a ruling rejected an environmental impact report from Chevron and the city of Richmond. The court called it "unclear and inconsistent."
"Tar sands crucial to energy mix: Imperial CEO"
Oil sands crucial to energy mix: Imperial CEO
By Claudia Cattaneo, Financial PostMay 15, 2009
Canwest News Service
CALGARY -- Canada’s oil sands represent such a large part of the remaining world oil resources it’s unrealistic to exclude them from North America’s future energy mix, said the CEO of Imperial Oil Ltd.
Despite a push to stop or contain their development, Bruce March said Alberta’s deposits represent 40% of known oil resources in the world that are not under the control of national oil companies.
PUC extends deadline for filing in Keystone XL pipeline case
PUC extends deadline for filing in pipeline case
Published May 21 2009
The state Public Utilities Commission has extended a deadline to apply for party status in a case involving an oil pipeline in western South Dakota, but did not extend the deadline as much as one advocacy group requested.
Dakota Rural Action had requested that the PUC extend the deadline to file for party status to June 10, almost a month past the original deadline of May 11. The PUC on Wednesday announced it will extend the deadline, but only until May 31.
By: Austin Kaus, The Daily Republic
Guujaaw, President, Council of the Haida Nation warns Enbridge Re: Gateway
Guujaaw, President, Council of the Haida Nation
May 19 2009
To: John Carruthers
President of Enbridge "Northern Gateway Pipeline"
In response to your letter dated April 29th.
You have invited us to attend a meeting in Kitimat on June 18 and 19, "to guide
the design, construction, and operations of the proposed project".
This project that you are proposing would necessitate the movement of tankers
through these waters on a daily basis, which of course, is of concern to us.
We are a people who depend on the health and well-being of the seas around us.
