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.
ENERGY REGULATOR
Nuclear watchdog too close to industry, report suggests
SUE BAILEY AND JIM BRONSKILL
The Canadian Press
October 9, 2007
OTTAWA -- Canada's nuclear safety watchdog appears to be too cozy with the industry it's supposed to monitor, suggests an independent report.
The study ordered by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission cites long-standing complaints that the regulator focuses far more on the companies it licenses than on concerned lobby groups or citizens.
Corporate America's Latest CounterAttack:
The Green Masquerade
By ALAN MAASS and JEFFREY ST. CLAIR
Alan Maass: The latest trend for corporations is to show off green
credentials--BP has a series of commercials with a guy standing in a
field talking about alternative fuels, and Rupert Murdoch is vowing to
make his international operations carbon neutral. What kind of impact do
corporate green solutions have on curbing global warming?
Jeffrey St. Clair: NONE. That's the short answer. Must we really elaborate?
Refinery touted to boost Peace oilsands
Proposed bitumen-processing plant would make development worthwhile, says company
Gordon Jaremko, edmontonjournal.com
Published: 11:56 am
EDMONTON - A proposed $2.5-billion refinery in northwestern Alberta will kick-start development in the largely overlooked oilsands around Peace River, the project's sponsor predicts.
The plant will fill in a missing economic link by creating a large new market for bitumen, said Gary Brierley, chief operating officer and a partner in privately owned Bluesky Refining Inc.
Published on 3 Oct 2007 by ASPO-USA / Energy Bulletin. Archived on 3 Oct 2007.
Limits to growth and the Hedberg conference
by Dave Cohen
Fear grows in darkness; if you think there's a bogeyman around, turn on the light.
— Dorothy Thompson
Fort McMurray teens swapping sexual favours for shelter: report
'Pace of life' in booming city contributing to problem, official says
Last Updated: Thursday, September 27, 2007 | 8:19 PM NT
CBC News
A survey by a homelessness committee found some teenagers in the booming city of Fort McMurray are resorting to prostitution in exchange for a bed or couch for the night.
The report, released this month by the region's Homelessness Initiatives Steering Committee, said 65 young people between the ages of 11 and 17 are without a permanent home in Fort McMurray.
First Nation Challenges Alberta's Policy on Oil Sands Tenures and Development
Requests halt on approval of Shell's Carmon Creek Project
CALGARY, ALBERTA--(Marketwire - Oct. 1, 2007) - In a historic application to the Alberta Court of Queen's Bench, the Woodland Cree First Nation (WCFN) has filed legal action against the Alberta government today. The First Nation asserts the Alberta government is breaching its legal and constitutional duty to consult with First Nations on oil and gas tenures, and specifically those relating to oil sands development projects.
If Albertans want it all, oil sands must pay
October 2, 2007
Listening to the great Alberta royalty debate is like watching the Yankees play the Red Sox: It's hard to know which overprivileged group to root against. Should you boo the oil sands CEOs, who pay too little? Or jeer the provincial politicians, who spend too much?
In his latest entry, Jonathan Dawson stresses on the need for a
collective 'peak moment'
by Jonathan Dawson
New Statesman (September 28 2007)
One of the ports of call during the last two weeks that I have been away
was the sixth international conference of ASPO (the Association for the
Study of Peak Oil) in Cork. This is the body, founded by former oil
geologist Dr Colin Campbell, which more than any other has brought to
public consciousness the imminent peaking in the availability of cheap
fossil fuels.
‘Fun’ was hardly the word for it, but it was good to be in the company
Break Through: From the Death of Environmentalism to the Politics of
Possibility
by Ted Nordhaus and Michael Shellenberger
Houghton Mifflin, 344 pages, $25.00
What We Know About Climate Change
by Kerry Emanuel
MIT Press, 85 pages, $14.95
Climate Change: What It Means for Us, Our Children, and Our Grandchildren
edited by Joseph F C DiMento and Pamela Doughman
MIT Press, 217 pages, $19.95 paper
Note: Bill McKibben will be answering questions from readers about his
article "Can Anyone Stop It?" and the possibilities for action to stop
Hundreds march in Edmonton to protest labour laws
Canadian Press
September 22, 2007 at 10:21 PM EDT
EDMONTON — Hundreds of angry and loud tradespeople have laid Alberta's labour code to rest in a dramatic mock funeral.
Protest organizer Eric Klyne led the funeral procession to the legislature Saturday, flanked by men dressed as the grim reaper and a priest.
The demonstration capped off two weeks of labour unrest that began following an Alberta Labour Relations Board ruling that forbid the carpenters union from going on strike.
