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.
Investors urged to kick the tar sands habit
New report claims carbon intensive projects to extract oil from Canadian tar sands present unacceptable business risks
James Murray, BusinessGreen, 29 Jul 2008
Investors are to be urged to shun controversial projects to extract oil from North American tar fields following the publication of a major new report that claims the carbon intensive processes involved represent an unacceptable environmental and business risk.
Quote from the article below:
"It could also, conceivably, shut down Canada's only tactical bombing range at Cold Lake."
Naomi Klein: Bush Sees Crises in Fuel, Food, Housing and Banking as Chance to Exploit Us More
By Amy Goodman
Jul 20, 2008, 06:04
People are desperate for solutions but instead they're handed policies that don't solve the crises, and are highly profitable for corporations.
Brazen protesters tag Syncrude pond
Alexandra Zabjek, The Edmonton Journal
Published: 2:31 am, July 25, 2008
EDMONTON - A new chapter in activism against Alberta's oilsands was
opened Thursday when a group of protesters entered Syncrude's Aurora
mine site north of Fort McMurray and unfurled banners on the edge of a
controversial tailings pond.
"To actually go onto the (oilsands) sites themselves, that's a new thing
and I think we can expect to see more of that in the future as greater
awareness is brought to what's going on up north," said Paul Joosse, a
Tar Sands Industry Poised to Pollute Canada's Largest Freshwater Aquifer
CALGARY (July 24, 2008) – The Métis Nation in northeastern Alberta has
discovered that many of Alberta's in situ tar sands projects sit immediately
below a vast groundwater channel system that flows into the Athabasca River.
Given the accidental steam blowouts that have already occurred in the
region, the potential for pollution of Canada's largest freshwater aquifer
is very real.
"We are deeply concerned about these blowouts," says Rick Boucher,
Federal climate change report warns of health problems
STEVE RENNIE
The Canadian Press
July 24, 2008 at 4:59 PM EDT
OTTAWA — A major report on climate change and health forecasts a higher risk of injuries, illnesses and stress-related disorders brought on by more frequent bouts of extreme weather.
A not-yet-released Health Canada report urges the federal government to brace Canadians for health problems arising from more droughts, violent storms, heat waves and cold snaps.
ATTENTION: ALL NEWS EDITORS
==> Pictures attached of 2nd Protest Against PNWER Summit
==> No Smooth Sailing for PNWER Elites: Marina Entrance Blocked by Activists
==> Activists cite lack of transparent process and public consultation in
PNWER decision making given wide scope of policy impacts from 2010 Olympics
to oil and gas mining
Wednesday July 23, 2008 Vancouver- A group of activists blocked access to
the Westin Bayshore marina today to protest the Pacific NorthWest Economic
Region (PNWER) summit. In doing so, they prevented delegates from boarding a
Canadian energy policy "Made in USA"
The window may be closing on what's left of Canadian decision-making power over our own energy.
Dateline: Tuesday, July 22, 2008
by Linda McQuaig
When Americans want something that lies in another country, the consequences for that other country can be severe.
Even if they don't actually invade, they put a lot of pressure on lesser countries to behave as they want.
The future of the oil sands is one of the most important and contentious issues facing Canada.
Calgary upstart to turn coal into liquid fuel
Alter NRG plans to build $4.5-billion coal-to-liquids plant that would produce 40,000 barrels a day of fuel by 2014
NORVAL SCOTT
July 23, 2008
CALGARY -- For most energy companies, figuring how to best turn Alberta's vast oil sands into lucrative gasoline is challenging enough. But Alter NRG Corp. is looking to go one better.
Suncor gets go ahead to ramp up Firebag In-Situ plant production
CALGARY, Jul 23, 2008 (Canada NewsWire via COMTEX) ----Suncor Energy Inc. reports that, effective July 22, the Alberta Energy Resources Conservation Board (ERCB) has removed production constraints imposed on Suncor's Firebag in-situ oil sands operations.
