Oil Sands Truth: Shut Down the Tar Sands

Labour / Migration

It is falsely assumed that big projects equal lots of jobs and, by extension, labour peace if not outright satisfaction. The size and scope of the tarsands means for incredibly dangerous work conditions-- some fatalities at the plants have already occurred. The products seldom get their "value added" in union-run locations, instead the heavy bitumen can be shipped to many different locations across North America for refining, denying benefits to the union. However, the Union does not represent the "guest worker", now being imported in increasing numbers as legislation is changed to make access easier, the term of exploitation last longer, without any new efforts or pathways to deciding to stay after helping tear up the earth.

A Black Mound of Canadian Oil Waste Is Rising Over Detroit

WINDSOR, Ontario — Assumption Park gives residents of this city lovely views of the Ambassador Bridge and the Detroit skyline. Lately they’ve been treated to another sight: a three-story pile of petroleum coke covering an entire city block on the other side of the Detroit River.

The New York Times

By IAN AUSTEN
Published: May 17, 2013

Detroit’s ever-growing black mountain is the unloved, unwanted and long overlooked byproduct of Canada’s oil sands boom.

Goldman Sachs: Killing the Keystone XL Pipeline Kills Canadian Oil Sands

By Mat McDermott
Motherboard

Contrary to what the U.S. State Department says, stopping the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline would have a large impact on the financial viability of future expansion of tar sands projects, as shipping all that bitumen--oil's heavy, vicous tar form--out via rail would be just too expensive and logistically challenging. For the Canadian tar-sand oil boom to continue, they're going to need to open that vein.

Maine town opposes tar sands oil in pipeline

Maine town opposes tar sands oil in pipeline
Jun 12, 2013

HARRISON, Maine (AP) - Residents in a Maine town have passed a resolution opposing the pumping of Canadian tar sands oil through a pipeline for shipment overseas.

Residents in Harrison voted 156-59 for the resolution Tuesday, one of at least six towns to do so.

The pipeline is used to carry foreign crude oil from Maine to Montreal. Five miles stretch through Harrison.

South Portlanders petition to put tar-sands project on the ballot

South Portlanders petition to put tar-sands project on the ballot
Pre-emptive Petitioning
The Portland Phoenix
By DEIRDRE FULTON | June 13, 2013

In the latest pre-emptive salvo against a potential project that has garnered significant advance attention, a group of South Portlanders has launched a citizens' initiative to change the city's zoning ordinance in order to prevent the Portland Pipe Line Corporation from processing tar-sands oil through its Casco Bay facility.

B.C. officially opposes Enbridge Northern Gateway pipeline

B.C. officially opposes Enbridge Northern Gateway pipeline
'Our questions were not satisfactorily answered,' environment minister says
CBC News
May 31, 2013

The B.C. government has officially expressed its opposition to a proposal for the Northern Gateway pipeline project, saying it fails to address the province's environmental concerns.

The province made the announcement in its final written submission to the Northern Gateway Pipeline Joint Review Panel.

Tar Sands pipeline to take all-new route from Surrey to Burnaby

Oil pipeline to take all-new route from Surrey to Burnaby

By Jeff Nagel - Burnaby NewsLeader
May 27, 2013

Kinder Morgan Canada plans to stake out an almost all-new corridor for its second oil pipeline from Port Kells in Surrey to Burnaby to avoid digging through private property in densely populated neighbourhoods.

Greg Toth, senior project director of the Trans Mountain pipeline twinning, said following the existing right-of-way – as the company intends on most of the rest of the route through the Fraser Valley and the Interior – would be too disruptive to existing land owners.

Tar Sands sales dropping dramtically

Oil sands deals lose traction

JEFFREY JONES

CALGARY — The Globe and Mail

May. 24 2013

There’s a buyers’ strike in the oil sands.

At least a half dozen energy companies have come up dry in efforts to attract the rich bids they envisaged when they put oil sands assets on the auction block in the past year, showing downward pricing pressure on a sector touted as the cornerstone of Canada’s economic growth.

Marathon Ends Talks With Potential Tar Sands Buyer

Marathon Ends Talks With Potential Oil Sands Buyer
By Rebecca Penty - May 24, 2013
Bloomberg

Marathon Oil Corp. (MRO) ended talks to sell part of its stake in the Athabasca Oil Sands Project as Canadian oil sands deals languish in the face of low heavy crude prices and competing U.S. shale investments.

Jordan to Rely on Shale Oil to Meet Soaring Domestic Demand

7 August 2012—Jordan aims to extract 40,000 BOPD of oil from its shale oil reserves by 2016 to meet the country’s increasing demand, Jordan Oil Shale Energy Company (JOSECO) said.

JOSECO is a subsidiary of Estonian state-owned Eesti Energia.

Fort McMurray: Economic centre of Canada?

Claudia Cattaneo Jun 5, 2012
Financial Post

Fort McMurray, economic centre of Canada? Torontonians and the rest of the country had better get used to the idea. The Canadian economy will increasingly spin around the northern Alberta oil town if an industry forecast that shows Canada’s daily volumes will more than double to 6.2 million barrels a day by 2030, largely from the oil sands, proves right.