Oil Sands Truth: Shut Down the Tar Sands

Health

The Health implications in terms of these projects are vast, and not just the deadly explosions and industrial accidents that happen in production-—from reported increases in rare forms of cancer downstream from tar sands production to the pollution of fresh water leading to poisoned diets (fish, moose and plant toxicity)—-direct links are hard to establish but impossible to either rule out or ignore, especially where tarsand operations constitute overwhelmingly the greatest change to the environment in most corners of the continent effected directly by tarsand infrastructure.

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Cold-- K Beaton comic

November 4, 2007

Cold (click on the image to view)

by Katie Beaton

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

Six steps to “getting” the global ecological crisis

Posted by Prof. Goose on November 4, 2007 - 9:05am
John Feeney, Ph.D. Trained as a psychologist

Some of us who examine and discuss environmental matters are constantly puzzled and frustrated by the seeming inability of elected officials, environmental organizations, and environmental and political writers to “get” the nature of our ecological plight. Could it be they’re simply unaware of the ecological principles which enable one to understand it?

Fort Mac braces for huge rent hikes

Fort Mac braces for huge rent hikes
Three-bedroom place with leaky roof costs $2,950
By The Canadian Press
Sun. Nov 4 - 6:44 AM

FORT MCMURRAY, Alta. — Some apartment dwellers in northern Alberta’s booming oilsands were shocked this week to find notices posted on their doors warning of impending rent hikes exceeding $1,000 a month.

Management at River Park Glen told tenants the increases would become effective Feb. 1.

Edmonton: Rent crunch to worsen, go below 1% vacancy

Rent crunch to worsen
Vacancy rate forecasted to dip to under 1%

By KEVIN CRUSH, SUN MEDIA

Think the rental market is tight now? Just wait until next year.

That's when the apartment vacancy rate in Edmonton is forecasted to dip below the current 1% - making it that much harder for already frustrated renters to find a place to live.

"It's just getting retarded," said Jasmine, who asked her last name not be printed.

SIX MONTHS LOOKING

Jasmine said she's already spent more than six months trying to find a decent place for her and her fiance to rent with no luck.

Enbridge Announces TWO MORE (diluent & bitumen) Pipelines for Tar Sands

Enbridge to build C$2 billion oil sands pipeline
Fri Nov 2, 2007 10:31pm GMT

CALGARY, Alberta, Nov 2 (Reuters) - Enbridge Inc said on Friday it will build a C$2 billion ($2.14 billion) oil pipeline to handle tar-like bitumen from Petro-Canada's (PCA.TO: Quote, Profile, Research) planned Fort Hills oil sands project.

Enbridge, Canada's No. 2 pipeline firm, said the 480-km (300-mile) line will be capable of carrying 250,000 barrels of diluted bitumen a day from the project site near Fort McMurray, Alberta, southwest to an upgrader near the Alberta provincial capital of Edmonton.

Nuclear power talks continue [Whitecourt]

Nuclear power talks continue in the county
Despite questions from Woodlands County council the province has declined to get involved in the nuclear power discussion.

Chandra Lye
Star Staff
Wednesday October 31, 2007
A letter received from Sustainable Resource Development (SRD) Minister Ted Morton told council that the department would not consider a land purchase application, submitted this summer, because of Energy Alberta’s decision to build a nuclear plant in Peace River.

TransCanada Trying to Streamline Regulatory Process for Keystone in N Dakota

Pipeline developer says requested delay would be costly

The Associated Press - Saturday, November 03, 2007
BISMARCK, N.D.

An oil pipeline executive says the city of Fargo's request to delay a Canadian pipeline project would add up to $100 million in costs.

Fargo wants North Dakota's Public Service Commission to reopen hearings on the Keystone pipeline.

Keystone Vice President Robert Jones says Fargo had a chance to take part in earlier hearings about the project and did not.

US Groups Identifying Tar Sands as "threat # 1"

Oil sands seen as 'threat No. 1,' as U.S. may target dirtier fuels
SHAWN MCCARTHY
GLOBAL ENERGY REPORTER
October 30, 2007

Canadian oil sands producers should brace for further bad news - this time from south of the border, as the U.S. government moves toward a national climate change policy that could target dirtier fossil fuels such as the oil sands bitumen, a former U.S. energy official said yesterday.

Biofuel moratorium proposed to prevent starvation among the poor: UN Rapporteur

October 11, 2007 - 9:30 PM
UN rapporteur calls for biofuel moratorium

More and more corn is being used for biofuel at the expense of food, according to Jean Ziegler.

The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food is demanding an international five-year ban on producing biofuels to combat soaring food prices.

Switzerland's Jean Ziegler said the conversion of arable land for plants used for green fuel had led to an explosion of agricultural prices which was punishing poor countries forced to import their food at a greater cost.

Mud, sweat and tears (The fall of Fort McMurray)

Mud, sweat and tears

The vast tar sands of Alberta in Canada hold oil reserves six times the size of Saudi Arabia's. But this 'black gold' is proving a mixed blessing for the frontier town of Fort McMurray, fuelling both prosperity and misery. As the social and environmental toll mounts, Aida Edemariam reports on the dark side of a boom town.

Aida Edemariam
The Guardian// UK
Tuesday October 30 2007