Oil Sands Truth: Shut Down the Tar Sands

Water

Water is needed in huge amounts in tarsands production and in all other construction stages of tarsands infrastructure across the continent. It takes five litres of water to produce one of usable petrol. There is also water used to move gas, build new tar pits or that water which becomes polluted in the outlying areas. Waste tailings ponds are so vast as to be visible from outer space at this early point in production. Water is now being privatized in slow motion, as “access rights” are available in Alberta. As production grows and climate change continues to parch southern Albertan land, more and more water will be needed to help supply fuel for the American market. This water will ultimately be diverted from rivers, lakes, farms and cities throughout Canada; the water levels in the Athabasca River have already dropped several meters. The Deh Cho/Mackenzie River is already threatened, both from development along its valley and it is downstream from tar sands operations. A generation ago, the Athabasca River was clear and drinking was common. Now, those that live with the river consider it poison and off-limits.

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Guujaaw, President, Council of the Haida Nation warns Enbridge Re: Gateway

Guujaaw, President, Council of the Haida Nation
May 19 2009

To: John Carruthers
President of Enbridge "Northern Gateway Pipeline"

In response to your letter dated April 29th.

You have invited us to attend a meeting in Kitimat on June 18 and 19, "to guide
the design, construction, and operations of the proposed project".

This project that you are proposing would necessitate the movement of tankers
through these waters on a daily basis, which of course, is of concern to us.

We are a people who depend on the health and well-being of the seas around us.

Natives, environmentalists assail proposed Enbridge oil pipeline to Kitimat

May 6, 2009

TORONTO — First nations and environmental activists say the oil industry is trying for an end run around U.S. concerns about oilsands pollution and will trample on native lands with Enbridge Inc.'s (TSX:ENB) proposed pipeline from Alberta to the B.C. coast.

A small group journeyed from British Columbia to the pipeline company's annual meeting Wednesday in Toronto to protest against the Northern Gateway project.

National Energy Board schedules a hearing on Keystone XL pipeline project

CALGARY, May 12 /CNW/ - The National Energy Board (NEB) has scheduled an
oral hearing on an application from TransCanada Keystone Pipeline GP Ltd.
(Keystone) to construct and operate the Canadian portion of its proposed
Keystone XL pipeline project.

The hearing is scheduled to start on Tuesday, September 15, 2009 at 9:00
a.m. at a location to be determined.

The proposed project is a crude oil line that would run from Alberta to

Crude oil leak at Burnaby Mountain tank contained: Kinder Morgan

Crude oil leak at Burnaby Mountain tank contained: Kinder Morgan
May 7, 2009 |
CBC News

Some Burnaby residents awoke to the strong smell of oil fumes after about 200,000 litres of crude oil spilled from a storage tank on Burnaby Mountain on Wednesday night.

The leak at the Kinder Morgan tank farm just east of Vancouver was spotted at about 10 p.m. by a contractor, the company said. The oil was captured in a lined containment bay surrounding the tank, and there were no leaks into the surrounding environment, the company said.

Beaufort Sea Off-Shore Drilling on Hold Thanks to Environmentalists

Off-Shore Drilling on Hold Thanks to Environmentalists
By SHAWN BELL, SRJ Reporter 12.MAY.09

A major oil company will not drill in the Beaufort Sea due to environmentalists’ concerns.

Shell withdrew its plan for exploration in Alaska’s Beaufort Sea on May 6. The plan spanned 2007 to 2009, but was too large-scale for environmentalists. They voiced concerns about impacts drilling would have on marine wildlife. Shell told the United States’ Minerals Management Services it will file a new exploration plan for 2010.

NWT Promotes Mackenzie Gas Pipeline in Texas

NWT Promotes Pipeline in Texas
By SHAWN BELL, SRJ Reporter 12.MAY.09

The Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment was in Houston, Texas last week, promoting northern gas and reassuring potential investors that the GNWT still supports the Mackenzie Gas Project. Minister Bob McLeod is especially concerned about the US government’s plans to provide more than the current $18 billion in loan guarantees for an Alaskan pipeline, a situation he says weights the playing field in favour of the Americans.

As Calif. aims at carbon, Canada sees itself in bull's-eye

As Calif. aims at carbon, Canada sees itself in bull's-eye
By COLIN SULLIVAN AND DEBRA KAHN, Greenwire
New York Times
Published: April 30, 2009

Canadian oil exporters fear that a low-carbon fuel standard adopted by California last week threatens to upset a thriving North American trade in petroleum if the regulation spreads throughout the United States.

Greenpeace Canada heads to Scandinavia to tackle Statoil investments in tar sands

Greenpeace Canada heads to Scandinavia to tackle Statoil investments in tar sands
May 12th, 2009

The stench of reality

The stench of reality
The Gazette
Saturday, April 25 2009

The tar sands suddenly are a root metaphor for every pressing issue we face both as Canadians and as members of the human species, writes The Gazette's William Marsden in his essay The Perfect Moment. Here is an excerpt: