Corruption

MacKenzie Pipeline one step closer

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Backers of a proposed natural gas pipeline down the Mackenzie Valley in the Northwest Territories have received some good news.

Imperial Oil has worked out a tentative deal on land access with the one remaining aboriginal stake holder not yet on board. The deal still has to be ratified by Dehcho First Nation communities, which cover about 40 per cent of the pipeline's route, in the southwest corner of the terriroties.

The Role of the Environmentalist
A Bias for Life
Weekend Edition
August 30 / 31, 2008
By JOSH SCHLOSSBERG

After decades of speaking on Nature's behalf, the environmental movement continues to gain power and influence in the U.S. With media, government and even big business preaching the green gospel all of a sudden, modern day enviros might finally have an opportunity to start reversing the course of Earth-death, rather than just "slowing down the rate at which things have been getting worse."

This past summer, myself and friends were able to "tour" many of the projects in the Athabasca mining region and south of Fort McMurray (one of many places) where SagD/In Situ operations rule the day. These are albums belatedly created from that trip. This does not comprise anything remotely coming towards an exhaustive set of the multiple projects.

(you do not need to have a Facebook identity to see these albums).

Photos are from the land and the air.

Opti-Nexen's Long Lake (North) Project & CP's Surmont Project.

The cold truth about climate change

Deniers continue to insist there's no consensus on global warming. Well,
there's not. There's well-tested science and real-world observations.

By Joseph Romm

Feb. 27, 2008 | The more I write about global warming, the more I realize I
share some things in common with the doubters and deniers who populate the
blogosphere and the conservative movement. Like them, I am dubious about the
process used by the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to
write its reports. Like them, I am skeptical of the so-called consensus on

Sunoco considering returning to the oilsands
By CAROL CHRISTIAN
Today staff

After more than a decade-long absence, Sunoco Inc. is looking to return to the Alberta oilsands by way of increased bitumen for its U.S. refineries.

Sunoco president Lynn Elsenhan outlined that business intention Monday during an analyst conference call. However, she didn’t offer any specific companies as potential partners for the Northern Alberta venture.

The company has started looking, however, and is looking long-term, according to company spokesman Thomas Golembeski.

Sunoco set up the original endowment for the Pew Foundation, now called the Pew Charitable Trusts. They also began the corporation now known as Suncor.

Sunoco currently refines bitumen in Ohio and are planning to do so soon in their home turf of Philadelphia.

Sunoco has, through either Pew family members (J Howard Pew's heirs, J Howard started Sun Oil/Sunoco) or current board members and CEO's of Sunoco, a majority of the board of trustees of the Pew Charitable Trusts to this very day.

Alberta rethinks film funding rules after anti-oilsands doc gets cash
Thursday, December 11, 2008
CBC News

A documentary that takes a critical look at the oilsands is raising a big stink at the Alberta legislature.

It turns out that Downstream, by U.S. documentary maker Leslie Iwerks, was funded in part by the provincial government.

That's prompted the government to take a closer look at how films get funded in Alberta.

Green groups ramp up attacks on oil sands

Claudia Cattaneo, Calgary Bureau Chief, Financial Post Published: Wednesday, November 19, 2008

CALGARY - Environmental organizations in Canada and the United States are stepping up their campaign to derail Alberta's oil sands and seeking funding from deep-pocketed endowments, including the Rockefeller Brothers Fund.