Oil Sands Truth: Shut Down the Tar Sands

Alberta (& Saskatchewan) Tar Sands

The process of removing the tar from the sand involves incredible amounts of energy from clean-burning natural gas (with nuclear proposed along side), tremendous capital costs during build up, incredibly high petroleum prices to protect investments, and the largest single industrial contribution to climate change in North America. Production also involves the waste of fresh water from nearby lakes, rivers and aquifers that have already created toxic tailing ponds visible from outer space. None of the land strip mined has yet to be certified as reclaimed. It takes 4 tonnes of soil to produce one barrel of oil. The tar sands are producing over 1.2 million barrels of oil a day on average. The oil companies, Canada and the United States governments are proposing to escalate production to 5 million barrels, almost all destined for American markets-- and lower environmental standards while doing so. They also would need to violate the national and human rights of many indigenous nations who are rightly concerned about many dire social, environmental and economic repercussions on their communities.

To get the needed energy supplies, diluent for the bitumen and diverted freshwater to produce and then to transport the flowing heavy bitumen for refining would require massive new infrastructure and pipeline building from three different time zones in the Arctic, across British Columbia and through Alberta in a criss-cross pattern, into pipelines to such destinations as California, China, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Ontario, Illinois, Wisconsin and Texas. This entire project is now estimated at over $170 billion dollars. And after the whole process described so far, only then will all this dirty petroleum get burned and expel greenhouse gasses into the air causing further climate change.

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Alberta Tar Sands is a category limited to the location and production of tar sand bitumen, an area the size of the state of Florida in northern Alberta province. The giant processing plants near Fort McMurray where the land itself is strip mined as well as the primarily "in situ" in-ground steam separation/production and extraction plants in the Peace and Cold Lake Regions, all in Alberta, are the "Ground Zero" of the single largest industrial gigaproject ever proposed in human history. The process of removing the tar from the sand involves incredible amounts of energy from clean-burning natural gas (with nuclear proposed along side), tremendous capital costs during build up, incredibly high petroleum prices to protect investments, and the largest single industrial contribution to climate change in North America. Production also involves the waste of fresh water from nearby lakes, rivers and aquifers that have already created toxic tailing ponds visible from outer space. None of the land strip mined has yet to be certified as reclaimed. It takes 4 tonnes of soil to produce one barrel of oil. The tar sands are producing over 1.2 million barrels of oil a day on average. The oil companies, Canada and the United States governments are proposing to escalate production to 5 million barrels, almost all destined for American markets-- and lower environmental standards while doing so. They also would need to violate the national and human rights of many indigenous nations who are rightly concerned about many dire social, environmental and economic repercussions on their communities. To get the needed energy supplies, diluent for the bitumen and diverted freshwater to produce and then to transport the flowing heavy bitumen for refining would require massive new infrastructure and pipeline building from three different time zones in the Arctic, across British Columbia and through Alberta in a criss-cross pattern, into pipelines to such destinations as California, China, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Ontario, Illinois, Wisconsin and Texas. This entire project is now estimated at over $170 billion dollars. And after the whole process described so far, only then will all this dirty petroleum get burned and expel greenhouse gasses into the air causing further climate change.

Indian activists vow to fight northern Minn. oil pipeline

Indian activists vow to fight northern Minn. oil pipeline
by Stephanie Hemphill, Minnesota Public Radio
May 6, 2009

St. Paul, Minn. — Some Indian activists say they will fight a planned oil pipeline that would cross the Leech Lake Reservation in northern Minnesota.

The pipeline, which would be built by Enbridge Energy, would bring oil from Canada to a refinery in Superior, Wis. The Leech Lake Tribal Council has agreed to allow it to cross the reservation, in exchange for a $10 million payment from Enbridge Energy.

Natives, environmentalists assail proposed Enbridge oil pipeline to Kitimat

May 6, 2009

TORONTO — First nations and environmental activists say the oil industry is trying for an end run around U.S. concerns about oilsands pollution and will trample on native lands with Enbridge Inc.'s (TSX:ENB) proposed pipeline from Alberta to the B.C. coast.

A small group journeyed from British Columbia to the pipeline company's annual meeting Wednesday in Toronto to protest against the Northern Gateway project.

Statoil in trouble with major investors over its tar sands involvement

*News Release:*

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*Statoil in trouble with major investors over its tar sands involvement*

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13 May 2009 (Oslo, Norway) — Four major investors are putting pressure on
Statoil to withdraw from the tar sands, Greenpeace has learned.

Danske Bank has expressed its opposition to the contentious project while
Norway’s largest bank, DnBNOR, is holding meetings today to discuss whether
continued involvement in the Alberta tar sands is a sound investment.

In addition, prominent Statoil stakeholders, Folksam, a Swedish insurance

Shell committed to tar sands despite $42m losses

Shell vows to press on with projects amid cost cuts and falling profits

* Terry Macalister
* guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 29 April 2009

Shell has pledged to continue with its controversial tar sands projects but has been forced to consider far-reaching cost cuts to keep the operations going after they lost $42m (£28m) in the last three months.

The Six Ways to Play Canada’s Oil Sector

The Six Ways to Play Canada’s Oil Sector
By Martin Hutchinson
Contributing Editor
Money Morning

With oil finally trading back above the $50-a-barrel level, it’s time to recognize that crude prices are probably not going to remain low for very long, and may end up fluctuating in the $50-$80 range - regardless of what happens to the prices of other commodities.

As Calif. aims at carbon, Canada sees itself in bull's-eye

As Calif. aims at carbon, Canada sees itself in bull's-eye
By COLIN SULLIVAN AND DEBRA KAHN, Greenwire
New York Times
Published: April 30, 2009

Canadian oil exporters fear that a low-carbon fuel standard adopted by California last week threatens to upset a thriving North American trade in petroleum if the regulation spreads throughout the United States.

Greenpeace Canada heads to Scandinavia to tackle Statoil investments in tar sands

Greenpeace Canada heads to Scandinavia to tackle Statoil investments in tar sands
May 12th, 2009

The stench of reality

The stench of reality
The Gazette
Saturday, April 25 2009

The tar sands suddenly are a root metaphor for every pressing issue we face both as Canadians and as members of the human species, writes The Gazette's William Marsden in his essay The Perfect Moment. Here is an excerpt:

Suncor Posts Second Straight Loss After Oil Plunges

Apparently buying out Petro Can wasn't enough...!

--M

Suncor Posts Second Straight Loss After Oil Plunges
04/ 23/ 2009
By Gene Laverty

April 23 (Bloomberg) -- Suncor Energy Inc., the oil-sands producer that agreed last month to buy Petro-Canada, posted a second straight quarterly loss after the global recession dragged down crude prices.

CNRL (operators of Horizon) charged in foreign slave-labour deaths

EDMONTON — The Alberta government announced Tuesday that 53 charges have
been laid in the deaths of two foreign workers at an oilsands site two years
ago.

Canadian Natural Resources Ltd., Sinopec Shanghai Engineering Company Ltd.,
and SSEC Canada Ltd., have been charged under the Occupational Health and
Safety Act.

A breakdown of the charges was not immediately available.

Alberta Employment Minister Hector Goudreau said the charges signal to the
world that Alberta's oilsands remain a safe place to work.