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.
Mackenzie Valley gas pipeline hits new snag
First Nation wants wilderness plan first
LISA SCHMIDT, CanWest News Service
Montréal Gazette, Calgary Herald
April 05, 2007
The last aboriginal holdout to the Mackenzie Valley natural gas pipeline is putting up another hurdle to its development, calling on the federal government yesterday to protect vast swaths of northern wilderness before the project can proceed.
Dehcho Nation wants land protection for pipeline
Apr 04, 2007 07:39 PM
James Stevenson
Canadian press
http://www.thestar.com/Business/article/199652
CALGARY–Ottawa must act now to protect a vast swath of land in the Northwest Territories if it wants to see a $16-billion natural gas pipeline built down the Mackenzie Valley, a major Dene First Nation said Wednesday.
Oilsands committee told to halt development
Last Updated: Wednesday, April 4, 2007 | 12:28 PM MT
CBC News
A provincial government committee touring Alberta to hear what people have to say about the pace of development in the oilsands were told on their Edmonton stop to halt development.
Everyone who spoke to the panel Tuesday night made passionate arguments in favour of stalling new projects until a wide range of problems are addressed.
With the land already compromised South and the tarsands themselves so vast and ugly, these are the projects that we can safely overlook or play down, right?
Dehcho Process talks on hold
Last Updated: Monday, March 19, 2007 | 6:39 PM CT
CBC News
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/north/story/2007/03/19/nwt-dehcho.html
Dehcho land-claim negotiations remained in limbo on Monday with the cancellation of the latest round of negotiations this week.
As well, the Dehcho First Nation announced it will not nominate any members to the two boards looking at Mackenzie Valley resource management. In the past, Grand Chief Herb Norwegian has claimed the Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act does not apply to the Dehcho.
The Tar Sands come to Kitimat
Charles Campbell//Mar 22, 2007
http://www.dogwoodinitiative.org/bulletins/tarsandstokitimat
First Nation pulls out of oilsands watchdog group
Last Updated: Tuesday, March 6, 2007 | 10:46 AM MT
CBC News
The largest First Nations community in the Fort McMurray area has walked away from an organization set up to protect the environment from too much oilsands development.
Government and industry are not taking protection of the environment seriously, said Sherwin Sheh, who speaks for the Mikisew Cree of Fort Chipewyan.
The First Nation is following the lead of the Athabasca Chipewyan and pulling out of the Cumulative Environmental Management Association.
A few quick points.
With the recent holes in all of the so-called "action plans" on climate
change so big you could drive one of the tarsand trucks carrying 400
tonnes of earth through it, the updating of projected costs here is a
giant challenge-- a gauntlet drop, if you will-- at the feet of the
Federal government.
The MGP is now well known to be, despite being the largest industrial
project in settler Canada's history at the time it was first conceived,
just a mere inflow into the vast energy needs of the tarsands. As
N.W.T. natural gas destined for Alberta's oilsands, groups charge
Last Updated: Tuesday, February 27, 2007 | 11:01 AM CT
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/north/story/2007/02/27/jrp-edmonton.html
CBC News
A coalition of national environmental groups is concerned that natural gas from the Northwest Territories will be used to fuel oilsands extraction in northern Alberta.
BC's Big Pipeline Plans Draw Fire from Indigenous Nations
Massive Gateway project faces serious legal obstacles. A special report.
By Christopher Pollon
August 23, 2006
http://thetyee.ca/News/2006/08/23/Enbridge/
Whenever Jim Culp thinks about the proposed Enbridge pipeline, his thoughts return to the night the mountain fell from out of the sky.
