Oil Sands Truth: Shut Down the Tar Sands

Forests

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.

warning: Creating default object from empty value in /var/www/drupal-6.28/modules/taxonomy/taxonomy.pages.inc on line 33.

Kelly Lake Cree Nation Denounces Pipeline Bombings

On October 17th, the Kelly Lake Cree Nation released a statement (below)
denouncing the recent attempts to sabotage a nearby gas pipeline in
northeast British Columbia.

On October 11th and 16th there were two separate explosions directed at
the pipeline, which is owned by the Calgary-based EnCana corporation.

Neither explosion caused any serious damage to the pipeline, however the
second one created a small rupture that forced its temporary closure. As
root force explains, “workers had been on high alert since the first

Imperial profit surges on higher oil, gas prices

CALGARY, Alberta, Oct 30 (Reuters) - Imperial Oil Ltd's (IMO.TO: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) third-quarter profit surged 70 percent as crude prices hit records before the world financial crisis led to a steep drop, Canada's largest oil producer and refiner said on Thursday.

Imperial, which is majority owned by U.S. oil major Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), earned a company-high C$1.4 billion ($1.1 billion), or C$1.57 a share, in the quarter, up from year-earlier C$816 million, or 88 Canadian cents a share.

Olympic resistance conference media

VANCOUVER, B.C. — Activists met in Vancouver Sunday to talk strategy around
resisting the 2010 Winter Olympic Games.

While opposition to the Games has been steady since before Vancouver won
them in 2003, protests are usually connected to a single of the many issues
around them.

But dozens gathered at the one-day conference to focus on converging
Canada's diverse activist community under one banner for the Games.

"It's important to use to connect with each other," said conference
participant Phillipa Ryan.

"Our humanity needs to be respected."

Canada tar sands slowdown may halt runaway costs

Canada oil sands slowdown may halt runaway costs
10.24.08
Canada - By Jeffrey Jones

CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - A slowdown in spending on multibillion-dollar projects to develop Canada's oil sands, one of the world's largest deposits of crude, should help cure one ailment the industry has so far been unable to shake: runaway inflation.

Somebody local with a grudge targeting oilpatch?

Somebody local with a grudge targeting oilpatch?
Stephen Hume
Vancouver Sun
Monday, October 20, 2008

News of a second pipeline bombing in British Columbia's Peace River district splashed across headlines from New York to New Zealand.

Almost as quickly, anxious residents of Tomslake, about 700 kilometres northeast of Vancouver, speculated about al-Qaida, first nations militants and eco-extremists.

Trillions of dollars' worth of oil

Trillions of dollars' worth of oil
High Stakes in Canada’s Vast Oil-Sands Fields
George Tombs, The Christian Science Monitor

The relentless search for oil has led explorers to the boreal forest of northeastern Alberta, among the jack pines and black spruce trees an hour's drive from the boom town of Fort McMurray. Kelly Hansen, operations manager at ConocoPhillips's $1 billion Surmont oil-sands plant, holds up the prize: a beaker of sticky black “synbit,” a 50-50 blend of bitumen (a viscous, tarlike petroleum) and synthetic oil.

North Central Corridor Pipeline construction can't start: Lubicon Cree

Pipeline construction can't start: Lubicon Cree
Last Updated: Thursday, October 16, 2008
CBC News

A small First Nation in northern Alberta is calling on TransCanada Pipelines to consult with them before it starts building a pipeline through their traditional territory.

"TransCanada will not be allowed to proceed with construction by the Lubicon people until such time they recognize land rights that we do have," said Dwight Gladue, a councillor with the Lubicon Lake First Nation.

Pain Compliance as Indigenous Relations

October 14, 2008
Pain Compliance as Indigenous Relations
Inside the Barriere Lake Algonquins' blockade of highway 117
by Dru Oja Jay

The Dominion - http://www.dominionpaper.ca

A girl holds a sign during a blockade of highway 117 in northern Quebec by the Algonquins of Barriere Lake. Photo: Maya Rolbin-Ghanie

Russian Gas Executives Visit Palin’s Turf

Russian Gas Executives Visit Palin’s Turf
By ANDREW E. KRAMER
Published: October 14, 2008

MOSCOW — A high-level delegation from the Russian energy company Gazprom met in Anchorage with state officials on Monday to talk about investing in Alaskan energy projects. The meeting came nearly three weeks after Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska talked in a television interview about her expertise in energy matters and took a hard line with Russia.

Canadian Government wins re-election. Positive for mining?

NATURAL RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT A PRIORITY
Canadian Government wins re-election. Positive for mining?

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his Conservative Government easily won re-election Tuesday, which may prove a positive political development for the Canadian mining sector.
Author: Dorothy Kosich
Posted: Wednesday , 15 Oct 2008

RENO, NV -

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper led his Conservative Party to a victory Tuesday, but appeared to have failed to gain enough seats in Parliament to win a majority government.