Forests lose more trees and habitat to pipeline “right of way” cuts and tar pit building than to clearcuts. With minor variation, pipelines go the direct route. Through the strip mining of the land that contains tarsand petroleum and through pipeline construction to accomodate, only the Amazon Basin in Brazil would see larger rates of deforestation than the Boreal forest cover surrendered to the tarsands. Roads often accompany pipelines, as do various other developments. Hundreds of thousands of miles of forests, all combined, have been lost to infrastructure built to accommodate tarsands operations. Now the industry wants to build two approximately 1200 km long Mackenzie and Gateway pipelines as well as 2700 km's from Alaska's North Slope to accomodate tarsand oil production.
Peter Carrels : Why an oil refinery is a step in the wrong direction
Saturday, August 23, 2008
In South Dakota, politicians and business leaders are cheering a massive oil refinery planned for the state’s southeast corner. If built, it will be the first oil refinery constructed in the United States in more than 30 years.
If By Clean You Mean Filthy
by Umbra Fisk
Grist (July 23 2008)
Question
Dear Umbra,
I noticed that several of the presidential primary debates were
sponsored by clean coal. This was announced during breaks and several
commercials aired. I have since seen several more commercials and online
advertisements. Is clean coal an oxymoron? Is this a PR stunt or are
there any real environmental benefits to clean coal that rival solar and
wind? See www.americaspower.org.
Andrew S.
Brookline, Massachusetts
Answer
Dearest Andrew,
Canada's Harper Says Mackenzie Pipeline to `Come to Fruition'
By Theophilos Argitis and Alexandre Deslongchamps
Aug. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said he is ``optimistic'' Imperial Oil Ltd.'s Mackenzie pipeline project will ``come to fruition.''
``I am optimistic that in the not-too-distant future this project will come to fruition,'' Harper told reporters today in the village of Tuktoyaktuk on the shores of the Arctic Ocean.
Shell slammed over "sustainable" tar sands advert
ASA rules advert claiming tar sands projects are part of a "sustainable future" is misleading
James Murray, BusinessGreen, 13 Aug 2008
Oil giant Shell has once again had its knuckles rapped by the watchdog for overstating its green credentials after it claimed in an advert that its $10bn oil sands project in northern Canada represented a "sustainable energy source".
Take Charge: Dirty Work in Alberta
By Morgan Goodwin - August 26, 2008
Take Charge Campaign
This newsletter is provided by the Take Charge Campaign, a local initiative to encourage and to help people to conserve energy. It is published twice a month.
This week in Dirty Energy: Alberta Tar Sands
What's happening in the Alberta tar sands in Canada is the most destructive project on Earth, according to Environmental Defence. Thousands of square miles of tundra are being scraped away to harvest an oil-rich layer of earth between 10 and 80 feet deep.
August 6, 2008
Oil and Gas Infrastructure
Enbridge begins early planning of $5-billion Gateway pipeline project
Richard Gilbert // staff writer
The largest private infrastructure project in the history of British Columbia is in the early planning stages.
Enbridge Corporation hopes to construct a twin pipeline and marine facility in Kitimat.
The Gateway pipeline project involves the construction of a petroleum export pipeline, a condensate import pipeline and a marine tank terminal to service both pipelines.
Early estimates peg the cost near $5 billion.
Rare cancer strikes
Small community near Alberta oilsands has disproportionate number of bile duct disease
By VIVIAN SONG
A mutated, two-mouthed fish caught downstream from the Alberta oilsands caught the attention of the Canadian public last week. Beneath its first mouth is a confusing aberration, a second, baby, jagged-toothed lower jaw that seems to grow timidly out of the fish-face.
Two boys fishing in Lake Athabasca caught the 2.5-kilo goldeye two weeks ago and handed it over to the Mikisew First Nation.
Many hurdles ahead for TransCanada's US$26 billion Alaska pipeline
August 2008 // The Energy News
CALGARY _ There are still numerous hurdles TransCanada Corp. (TSX:TRP) must clear before it can break ground on its proposed US$26-billion Alaska pipeline, not the least of which is getting shipping commitments from natural gas producers in the region, an analyst said Wednesday.
Two-Mouthed Fish Discovered Near Alberta Oil Sands, CBC Reports
By Jeremy van Loon
Aug. 19 (Bloomberg) -- A mutant fish with two mouths was caught in northern Alberta, near the Canadian province's Athabasca oil sands, stoking residents' concerns about pollution, Canadian Broadcasting Corp. reported.
The fish was hooked from a dock at Lake Athabasca and handed over to park wardens, CBC said on its Web site today. Locals are fighting expansion of heavy oil production because of its impact on the environment, the Web site said.
Green groups quit oil sands forum
Protest move made as Industry Minister in U.S. to address concerns about environmental impact
PAUL HAAVARDSRUD AND SHAWN MCCARTHY
August 19, 2008
CALGARY AND OTTAWA -- Three groups have quit a government-sponsored forum for assessing environmental costs in the oil sands, a move that undercuts government efforts to burnish the image of the massive developments in U.S. markets.
