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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Booms Housing Crisis Leading Women into Survival Sex Trade

Housing woes lead to sex trade: advocate
June 18, 2007
http://www.sextradeworkersofcanada.com/sex%20trade/News/detail.asp?iData...
By CARTER HAYDU , SPECIAL TO SUN MEDIA

Mary Jane St. Savard checks Marvin Ross's hair at their tent behind the Bissell Centre on 96st and 105 ave. A large group of people have set up tents on the empty field after police and park rangers moved them off various other locations.

Skyrocketing rents are forcing some women into the "survival sex trade," warns one advocate for prostitutes.

Tar Sand Workers Cruising down to Edmonton?

Ft. Mac workers cruising in city?
CP - 5/31/2006
By FRANK LANDRY, CITY HALL BUREAU
http://www.sextradeworkersofcanada.com/sex%20trade/News/detail.asp?iData...

The head of a city group that targets johns says oilsands workers making big bucks "working in the bush" are regularly cruising down to Edmonton and buying sex.

Kate Quinn, executive director of the Prostitution Awareness and Action Foundation of Edmonton (PAAFE), said her group will approach oil companies about going into Fort McMurray to talk to employees about the harms of prostitution.

Ricardo Acuna on Non-Consensus in the Tar Sands Multi-Stakeholder Committee

http://www.straightgoods.ca/ViewFeature7.cfm?REF=410

Oil Sands Committee reports back

It is time for the Stelmach government to pick a side: public or industry.

Dateline: Tuesday, August 07, 2007

by Ricardo Acuna

Last week, the Alberta Government released the much anticipated final report and recommendations of the Oil Sands Multi-Stakeholder Committee — the committee charged with carrying out a broad-based consultation with Albertans and making recommendations on the future of the Alberta tar sands.

New Greenpeace office to fight tar sands

New Greenpeace office to fight oilsands
edmontonjournal.com
Published: Wednesday, August 01
EDMONTON - The environmental activist organization Greenpeace Canada is setting up shop in Edmonton to fight Alberta's oilsands development.
The organization has hired two full-time staff to campaign against devlopment of northern Alberta's oilsands, which it calls Canada's glob al warming disaster.

Homelessness in Fort McMurray

Image being addressed
http://www.fortmcmurraytoday.com/Local%20News/328436.html

By MATTHEW HEINDL
Today staff
Friday August 03, 2007

The need for a homeless shelter for youth was broached at a homeless strategy session in Fort McMurray Thursday, but it wasn’t adopted as one of the areas identified as immediate priorities.

The World's Most Expensive Babysitters

The World's Most Expensive Babysitters
By Tom Dyson
August 6, 2007
http://www.dailywealth.com/archive/2007/aug/2007_aug_06.asp

Today, I heard the story of Angela.

Angela is 17 years old. Recently, she was offered $3,500 per month to babysit three children for a few hours after school each day while the parents work late. Two of the children are grown up. The third is a toddler. The toddler sleeps. The other two children take care of themselves. Angela watches TV, does her homework, then goes home. That's it.

Buying our way out of sin

Buying our way out of sin
THE TELEGRAM [St Lohn's, NFLD)
The Telegram
http://www.thetelegram.com/index.cfm?sid=51665&sc=80

For such a modern-day problem, it seems like a terribly Medieval solution. The problem is climate change — the way humanity is altering the Earth’s weather by spewing fossil-fuel emissions into the atmosphere.

Greenpeace in Edmonton, their sights set on shutting down Alberta’s tarsands.

Target: tarsands
Greenpeace comes to Edmonton

By NICKI THOMAS, SPECIAL TO SUN MEDIA
http://www.edmontonsun.com/News/Edmonton/2007/07/31/4383282.html

Greenpeace is setting up shop in Edmonton with their sights set on shutting down Alberta’s tarsands.

“The tarsands are one of the most environmentally destructive projects in Canada, if not the world,” said tarsands campaign organizer Geeta Sehgal.

Sehgal said the tarsands create 40 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions every year, ensuring Canada can’t meet its commitments to the Kyoto Protocol.

Oil, gas development could harm First Nations' quality of living: Sierra Club

Oil, gas development could harm First Nations' quality of living: Sierra Club
Last Updated: Friday, July 27, 2007 | 12:23 PM MT
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/calgary/story/2007/07/27/nwt-sierra.html
CBC News

Decades of oil and gas activity in northern Alberta has done little to improve the lives of aboriginal people living there, according to a national environmental group that used federal government numbers that gauge community well-being.

Populations Tar Sands Demands Ignored by Province

some may think it a bit unfair of myself to often change the headlines originated by the newspapers or other news sources the story is fair-used from. But this one begs to be the prototypical reason why that is necessary: The recommendations concluded have only the small or nearly inconsequential ideas approved, and things from water use to moratoriums to land use, to greenhouse gas emissions and more are "not able to reach consensus". In other words, the whole procedure is a giant play, and the consultations are not to be incorporated.